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THE   COUNTRY   SCHOOL 


THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

A  STUDY  OF 

ITS   FOUNDATIONS,  RELATIONS,  DEVELOPMENTS, 
ACTIVITIES,  AND  POSSIBILITIES 


BY 
HOMER  H.  SEERLEY 

PRESIDENT    OF    IOWA    STATE    TEACHERS    COLLEGE 


NEW  YORK 

CHARLES  SCRIBNER'S  SONS 

1913 


Copyright,  1913.  »* 
CHARLES  SCRIBNER'S  SONS 


FIRST  WORDS 

There  are  few  modern  educational  discussions 
that  have  reached  such  proportions  and  have  de- 
veloped such  a  diversity  of  conclusions  as  have 
those  that  have  attempted  the  problems  of  the 
country  school.  College  education  is  simple  com- 
pared to  the  education  that  deals  with  the  instruc- 
tion and  the  training  of  the  masses.  To  secure 
the  solution  of  college  problems  the  best-trained 
minds  of  the  generation  have  given  time,  thought, 
and  Investigation.  As  a  result,  definite  organiza- 
tion has  been  secured,  notable  standardization  has 
resulted,  and  the  profession  of  educators  has  been 
recognized.  In  this  field  are  found  the  higher 
salaries,  the  greater  emoluments,  and  the  most 
attractive  distinctions.  Whenever  men  conclude  to 
make  education  a  career  they  naturally  prepare 
for  some  specific  department  of  higher  education, 
as  they  readily  conclude  that  there  is  enough  of 
sacrifice,  of  lack  of  recognition,  and  of  limited  ser- 
vice in  this  more  honored  and  better  esteemed 
field  of  public  activity. 


vi  FIRST  WORDS 

These  conditions  have  left  the  greater  problems 
of  popular  education  in  the  hands  of  public  officials 
and  teachers  who  have  but  short,  indeterminate, 
changeable  terms  of  public  service,  and  have  made 
the  whole  organization  and  management  tentative 
and  evolutionary.  Such  individuals  as  short-term 
legislators,  hmited-service  State  superintendents 
of  public  instruction,  temporary  county  superin- 
tendents, short-time  boards  of  examiners  for 
teachers'  certificates,  and  three-year  members  of 
school  boards  control  the  destinies,  decide  the 
policies,  determine  the  expenditures,  and  regulate 
the  standards  that  such  huge  efforts  represent. 
Most  of  the  improvement  plans  which  have  been 
formulated  have  appeared  in  the  form  of  recom- 
mendations to  legislatures  by  State  superintend- 
ents or  in  the  form  of  resolutions  adopted  by 
State  and  national  teachers'  associations,  repre- 
senting the  stand-points  of  administration,  of 
expediency,  and  of  modification  rather  than  the 
stand-points  of  social  efficiency  and  of  actual 
capability  for  the  masses. 

These  pages  have  been  written  by  one  who  ar- 
rived at  the  opinions  here  presented  by  actual  ex- 
perience with  the  life  of  the  farm  through  all  its 
varied   hardships,    pleasures,  struggles,   and   sue- 


FIRST  WORDS  vii 

cesses.  The  country  school  was  his  educational 
institution  during  his  elementary  school-days.  Its 
vantage-ground  as  a  place  for  effective  work,  its 
field  of  opportunity  for  the  largest  and  most  suc- 
cessful usefulness  to  society,  its  remarkable  chance 
for  the  greatest  results  that  any  kind  of  educational 
endeavor  can  give,  are  well  known  to  him  through 
an  accurate  acquaintance  with  the  men  and  women 
of  the  farm.  They  possess  a  competency  in  doing 
things  that  is  unusual,  they  have  a  reliability  that 
cannot  be  appreciated  until  it  is  tested,  and  they 
have  a  sanity  of  view  in  regard  to  public  affairs 
that  has  made  them  progressive  and  self-reliant. 
Three  years'  work  as  a  teacher  in  these  country 
schools  renewed  his  experience  with  the  boys  and 
girls  of  the  farm  and  confirmed  his  former  opinion 
that  they  were,  as  a  class,  of  superior  quahty,  char- 
acter, and  disposition.  Of  his  many  years  of  ex- 
perience, none  gave  him  more  assurance  of  the 
future  prospects,  or  of  the  earnest  sincerity,  or  of 
the  superb  willingness  to  realize  the  best  things 
of  Hfe  than  did  the  boys  and  girls  that  were  his 
pupils  in  those  remarkably  interesting  winter 
terms.  The  school-day  was  never  too  long,  the 
tasks  assigned  were  never  too  heavy,  and  the  re- 
quirements of  the  school  management  were  never 


viii  FIRST  WORDS 

too  exacting  not  to  receive  their  co-operation, 
their  commendation,  and  their  sympathy.  In  one 
of  these  schools  it  seemed  necessary  to  the  teacher 
to  have  at  least  two  night  sessions  a  week  to  ac- 
complish the  work  as  planned  for  the  older  pupils 
in  order  to  give  them  the  opportunities  actually 
needed.  At  every  such  special  session  they  were 
regularly  in  attendance  and  even  seemed  to  equal 
the  teacher  in  ambition,  industry,  and  zeal.  Later 
it  became  his  privilege  to  conduct  teachers'  in- 
stitutes and  have  experience  with  the  corps  of 
country  teachers  of  a  whole  county.  They  were 
chiefly  country  bred  and  country  educated.  They 
displayed  an  interest,  an  application,  and  a  spirit 
of  improvement  during  those  ten  years  of  consecu- 
tive instructing  in  the  same  county  that  estabhshed 
their  place  as  workers  for  the  common  good  to  the 
very  highest  degree  of  admiration.  This  opinion 
has  been  confirmed  by  twenty-five  years  of  addi- 
tional administrative  experience  in  a  teachers' 
training  school,  where  country  boys  and  girls  in 
great  numbers  have  studied  to  become  country 
teachers.  They  are  the  salt  of  the  earth.  They  de- 
serve every  opportunity  that  civilization  can  con- 
fer. The  nation,  the  State,  and  the  county  should 
combine  to  enlarge  the  province  of  the  elementary 


FIRST  WORDS  ix 

school  in  order  to  train  the  masses  for  an  intelli- 
gent and  a  productive  citizenship.  With  these 
great  facts  in  mind,  with  an  ambition  to  contribute 
some  valuable  notions  that  may  better  the  pros- 
pects of  elementary  education,  with  a  hope  of 
helping  the  country  people,  their  children,  and 
their  teachers  to  appreciate  more  fully  their  rights 
and  their  privileges,  these  chapters  on  funda- 
mental problems  of  public  education  are  respect- 
fully submitted. 

Homer  H.  Seerley. 

Iowa  State  Teachers  College, 

Cedar  Falls,  Iowa,  December  lo,  191 2. 


CONTENTS 

I.    THE  COUNTRY  COMMUNITY  ^^,_^ 

Advantages  and  disadvantages  of  country  life.     .     .  3 

Factors  that  make  for  the  welfare  of  the  community  4 

The  school  district  the  unit  of  school  management  4-5 

ResponsibiHties  of  the  electors  in  school  district      .  5-6 

The  school  board  and  its  duties 6 

The  patrons  and  the  importance  of  their  rights  and 

duties 7 

Importance    of    making    pupils    understand    that 

schools  are  for  preparation  for  life 7-8 

The  teacher  and  his  qualifications 8-9 

Harmony  of  effort  necessary  to  produce  good  schools  9 

II.    THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

Distinctive  marks  of  country  school lo 

Importanceof  country  school  in  the  community  .     .  lo-ii 

Part  played  by  the  practical  in  country  school     .     .  11-12 
Importance  of  adapting  country  school  to  the  needs 

of  country  people 12-13 

Intellectual  culture  important  in  country  school     .  I3~i4 

Importance  to  child  of  habits  of  industry   ....  I4~i5 

III.    COUNTRY  LIFE     ^ 

Characteristics  of  country  life 16-17 

Value  of  experience  as  a  teacher 17-18 

Importance  to  children  of  sharing  in  home  work    .  18-19 

Necessity  of  gratifying  social  needs 19-20 

Rights  of  the  young 20 

I\'.    WHAt^  EpUtATION  CAN  DO 

What  education  means 21-22 

Character  the  most  important  product  of  education  22 

zi 


xii  CONTENTS 


Page 


Importance  of  success  in  school  work 23-24 

Value  of  social  element  in  school 24-25 

Country  environment  best  under  normal  conditions       25-26 

V.  THE  ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  SCHOOL 

Keeping  records  of  pupils'  work 27-28 

Necessity  of  examining  pupils  at  beginning  of  each 

term 28-29 

Reading    and    arithmetic    the    basic    subjects    for 

classification 29-30 

Classification  more  important  than  grading  in  coun- 
try school 30 

Seats  should  be  assigned  by  teacher  according  to  a 

definite  plan 30-31 

Miscellaneous  arrangements  should  be  systematized 

by  teacher 31-32 

Stimulation  of  work  and  rousing  of  interest  the  end 

of  organization 32 

VI.  THE  SCHOOL  HOUSE  AND  GROUNDS 

Needs  of  present-day  country  school 33-34 

Country  school-house  must  be  adequate  to  meet  de- 
mands of  modern  education   34-35 

Country  school-house  must  be  large  enough  to  be 
used    for   lyceums,   farmers'   meetings,   lecture 

courses,  etc 35-36 

Importance  of  best  modern  equipment  for  heating, 

lighting,  and  sanitation 36 

Equipment  for  shop  work,  cooking,  sewing,  etc.  .     .       36-37 
Importance  of  instruction  in  agriculture     ....       37-38 

VII.  THE  ORGANIZATION  OF  A  COUNTRY 

COMMUNITY 

Importance  of  organization  to  success  in  public  af- 
fairs     39 

Management  of  school  building  and  equipment,  the 

business  of  the  school  board 39-4° 


CONTENTS  xiii 

pa<;e 

A  literary  club  of  great  value  in  the  community  .  40-41 
Importance  of  a  science  club  to  the  community  .  .  41-42 
Importance  of  a  singing  club  to  the  community  .  .  42 
A  woman's  club  a  source  of  profit  and  pleasure  .  .  42-43 
Miscellaneous  activities  that  contribute  to  the  in- 
terest and  good  of  the  community 43-44 

Value  of  friendly  competition 44 

VIII.    THE  PROGRAMME 

Importance  of  a  programme 45 

A  proper  schedule  considers  the  laws  of  mental  en- 
durance and  mental  activity 45~46 

Importance  of  understanding  the  order  of  develop- 
ment of  child's  mind 46 

What  this  order  is 46 

Diflference  between  perceptions  and  conceptions  .     .  46-47 

Memory,  imagination,  and  judgment 46-47 

Reasoning 4^ 

Character  of  teaching  determined  by  order  of  child's 

development 4^ 

The  most  difficult  work  should  come  when  mental 

energy  is  at  its  height 49 

Only  the  most  concrete  and  graphic  types  of  arith- 
metic should  be  taught  in  the  lower  grades  .     .  49-50 
Work  must  be  adapted  to  the  age  and  development 

of  pupil 5° 

Algebra  adapted  to  a  higher  mental  development 

than  arithmetic 50 

Need  of  modifying  daily  plan  of  teaching  to  suit  the 

mental  condition  of  pupil 50-51 

Six  hours  with  two  recess  periods  of  fifteen  minutes 

each  the  usual  school  day 5' 

Two  hours  in  morning  and  two  in  afternoon  prob- 
ably enough  work  for  average  child     ....  S^~S^ 

Best  to  have  recitations  of  good  length 52 

Importance  of  variations  of  programme      ....  52 

Proposed  general  programme  of  recitation  ....  53 
Importance  of  arranging  oral  lessons  and  written 

lessons  on  alternate  days 53"54 


xiv  CONTENTS 


PAGE 


Importance  of  independent  night  work  for  advanced 

students 54 

Information  studies  best  adapted  to  outside  work    .  54 

IX.    MANAGEMENT 

Necessity  for  definite  aims  on  part  of  teacher  .     .     .  55-56 

Laws  of  school  binding  on  teacher  as  well  as  on  pupil  56 

^Importance  of  teacher's  manner  and  spirit  in  school  56-57 

Characteristics  of  good  management 57-59 

Ways  in  which  the  skill  of  teacher  shows  itself   .     .  59-60 
Importance  of  finding  dominant  intellectual  interest 

of  community 60-61 

X.    SCHOOL  GOVERNMENT 

Character  of  government  of  school  depends  on  cir- 
cumstances   62-63 

No  standard  of  perfect  conduct  for  children     .     .     .  63-64 

Need  for  eternal  vigilance  on  part  of  teacher     .     .     .  64-65 
Personal  influence  and  popular  control  of  teacher 

qualities  of  most  permanent  value     ....  65 

School  government  extremely  complex 65-66 

The  moral  factor  the  most  important  influence  aflPect- 

ing  school  government 66-67 

The  intellectual  factor  concerns  chiefly  the  official  re- 
lations of  teacher  and  pupils 67 

Government  by  mere  authority  less  efficacious  than 

that  based  on  moral  and  intellectual  elements  67-68 

Force  to  be  used  only  as  a  last  resort 68-70 

XL    TACTICS 

Importance  of  a  simple  system  of  tactics    .     ,     .     .  71-7^ 

Usefulness  the  test  of  any  system  of  tactics     ...  72 

Systems  for  opening  and  closing  school 72-73 

Suppressive  discipline  to  be  avoided  as  not  training 

in  self-control 73-74 

School-room  routine  should  be  conducted  quietly      .  74-75 

Importance  of  relieving  monotony  in  school-room    .  75 

Rigid  forms  of  discipline  to  be  avoided 7S~77 


CONTENTS  XV 

XII.    EXAMINATIONS 

PAGE 

Examinations  properly  given  of  great  value     .     .     .  78-80 
Nature  of  examination  must  vary  according  to  cir- 
cumstances and  conditions 80-81 

Aim  of  examination  to  test  results 81-82 

Frequency    of   examinations    differs    according    to 

subject 82 

Three  chief  objects  of  examinations 83-84 

Importance  of  patience  and  deliberation  in  conduct- 
ing examinations 84-85 

XIII.     STUDY 

Importance  of  proper  lesson  assignments    ....  86-87 

Importance  of  assisting  pupil  to  prepare  lessons  ,  87-89 
Open  book  lessons  best  way  to  teach  pupils  how  to 

study 90 

What  values  of  study  depend  on 91 

XIV.    THE  RECITATION 

The  object  of  the  recitation 92-93 

Class  instruction  most  economical  method  in  schools  94 

Value  of  the  recitation  beyond  question  ....  94-95 
No   definite   form   of  conducting   recitation    to    be 

recommended 95-96 

Set  recitation  plans  to  be  avoided 96 

Tricks  often  practised  on  the  teacher 97 

A  combination  of  oral  and  written  methods  the  best 

recitation  plan 98-99 

XV.    THE  COMMONER 

The  teacher  a  part  of  the  machinery  of  the  school 

system lOO 

Importance  of  teacher's  cultivating  the  good  will  of 

the  community loo-ioi 

The  school  once  a  private  institution  now  controlled 

by  the  public 101-102 

Province  of  education  of  higher  rank  than  most  pub- 
lic undertakings 103 


xvi  CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Importance  of  cultivating  the  masses  in  a  democracy  103-104 

Fellowship  the  source  of  influence  in  both  teacher 

and  pupil 104-105 

Important  for  teacher  to  co-operate  in  every  move- 
ment for  community  good 105-106 

Need  for  business  judgment  as  well  as  professional 

knowledge  and  skill  on  part  of  teacher     .     .     .  106-107 


XVI.    THE  YOUNG  PEOPLE 

Conditions  for  normal  life  most  favorable  in  country  108-109 
Importance    of   recreation    and    entertainment    for 

young  people 109-110 

Importance  of  playgrounds lio-iii 

Making  the  school  a  social  centre iii 

Necessity  of  organizing  recreation  activities  of  school  1 1  i-i  1 2 

Importance  of  clubs  and  libraries 112-113 

XVII.    SUPERVISION 

No  real  supervision  of  country  schools 114 

Good  accomplished  by  county  superintendency  .     .  114-115 

Need  of  better  supervision 11 5-1 16 

Need  for  men  teachers 116-117 

Large  opportunities  of  district  superintendent  .  .  117-118 
Educational  organization — size  of  the  task  .  .  .  118-119 
The  place  of  the  expert 119-120 

XVIII.    THE   PLACE  OF  RECREATION 

Human  life  a  unity 121-122 

Importance  of  organizing  play 122-123 

Value  of  recreation 123-124 

Importance  of  making  school  work  enjoyable     .     .  124-125 

Real  province  of  education 125-126 

XIX.    TAXATION  AND  THE  STATE 

The  business  problem  of  the  country  school    ...  127 

The  part  played  by  the  State 127-128 


CONTENTS  xvii 

PAGE 

Success  of  State  subsidy  educational  work  .     .     .     .  129-130 
Importance  of  inspection  and  supervision   ....   129-130 

Need  for  better  teachers 130-131 

Importance  of  stimulating  local  interest  and  devel- 
oping local  initiative      131-132 

XX.    THE  DEMONSTRATION  SCHOOL 

To  win  the  approval  of  the  masses  educational  work 

must  stand  the  test  of  experience 133-134 

The  country  school  stands  where  it  stood  fifty  years 

ago     -     . 134 

Independent  district  control  of  schools  a  bar  to  im- 
provement   I34"~I35 

Importance  of  State  co-operation  with  district    .     .  136 

Need  for  higher  standards  for  teacher's  licenses  .     .  137 

Necessity  for  demonstration  schools 137 

XXI.    CO-OPERATION 

Importance  of  co-operation  to  country  communities  139-140 

Narrowness  of  the  country  dweller 140-141 

Differences  between  country  and  town  life      .     .     .   141-142 
Progress  in  country  schools  chiefly  dependent  on 

broadening  of  experience  of  community  .     .     .  143-144 
Necessity  for  enlarging  the  unit  of  school  organi- 
zation        144-145 

Co-operation  the  key  to  advancement  to  all  lines  of 

effort 145 

XXII.    THE  PROPER  UNIT  IN  SCHOOL 
ORGANIZATION 

Proper  unit  in  school  organization  varies  according  to 

circumstances 146 

Country  school  districts  often  over-organized  .     .     .  146-147 

The  county  the  best  taxing  unit  to  give  proper  finan- 
cial support 148 

Importance  of  inspection,  supervision,  and  expert 

management 148-149 


xviii  CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Size  of  community   unit   dependent   on   means  of 

communication 150 

Solution  of  country  school  problem  largely  a  matter 

of  business  adjustment 1 50-1 51 

XXIII.    STANDARDIZATION 

Strong  sentiment  for  standardization  of  schools     .  152 
Schools  now  standardized  from  lowest  grades  through- 
out high  schools 153-154 

Impossibility    of    hitherto    standardizing    country 

schools 154 

Great  influence  of  teacher  in  country  school  .  .  .  155-156 
Necessity  for  reasonable  standardization  of  country 

school 156 

Popular  misconceptions  of  education 157-158 

XXIV.    THE  COURSE  OF  STUDY 

Educational  ideals  of  various  peoples 159-161 

Function  of  country  school  only  partly  realized     .     .  162 

Present  courses  of  study  reflect  public  needs  .  .  .  163-164 
Difficulty  of  securing  competent  teachers  at  the  low 

salaries  available 164-165 

Training  in  English  language  first  result  to  be  sought  165 

Difficulties  of  teaching  English 165-166 

Success    in   other   branches   largely    dependent   on 

teaching  of  English 167-168 

Importance  of  arithmetic 168-170 

Thinking  in  abstract  relations  not  natural  to  the 

child  mind 170-171 

Value  of  information  subjects  such  as  geography  and 

history 171-172 

XXV.    THE  TEACHER  SUPPLY 

Too  many  school  districts  under  present  system     .  173 
Schools  should  be  so  conducted  as  to  bring  best  re- 
turns    173 

School  money  often  wasted 174 


CONTENTS  xix 


PAGE 


-^  Best  kind  of  teacher  for  country  school  ....  174-175 
Special  efforts  needed  to  train  teachers  for  country 

schools 175-176 

Need  of  country  teachers'  courses  in  high  schools     .  176 

Kind  of  training  needed  by  teacher 177-178 

Importance  of  actual  training  in  country  scliool  work  179 
Opportunities  for  high  schools  to  do  normal  school 

work 179-180 

Importance    of    teachers'    institutes    and    reading 

circles 180 

XXVI.    AGRICULTURE 

Development  of  curriculum 181-182 

Vocational  studies 182-183 

Purpose  of  manual  training 183 

Agriculture  in  the  country  school 184 

The  demands  of  agriculture  on  the  student     .     .     .   184-185 

What  agricultural  study  includes' 185-187 

Importance  of  co-operation  between  the  school  and 

the  home 187-188 

Education  a  preparation  for  real  present-day  living  188 

XXVII.     HAPPINESS 

Happiness  of  body,  mind,  and  spirit  the'chief  end  of 

human  attainment 189 

Equality  of  ability  among  men  not  desirable     .     .  190 

Education  gives  each  individual  the  opportunity  to 

make  the  best  of  himself 191-192 

Selfishness  the  greatest  source  of  unhappiness  .  .  193-194 
The  final  aim  of  education  personal  character     .     .   195-196 

XXVIII.    CONDITIONS  AND   PROSPECTS 

Rise  in  price  of  land  has  made  much  farming  un- 
profitable       197 

Educational   problems   complicated   by   advance  in 

cost  of  living 198 

Shortage  of  labor  and  rise  in  wages  unfavorable  to 

success  of  farm  life 199 


XX  CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Prosperity  of  agricultural  districts  injured  by  land 

speculation 199 

Progress  of  schools  hindered  by  increase  in  number  of 

tenant  farmers 199-200 

Progress  of  schools  dependent  on  social  and  financial 

conditions 200 

Progress  of  country  schools  prevented  by  social  de- 
terioration    201-202 

Value  of  State  aid  in  improving  country  schools     .  202-203 

The  problem  of  the  country  school  social  rather 

than  pedagogical 204 

XXIX.    FINAL  WORDS 

Limited  character  of  present  discussion     ....  206 

Country   schools   neglected   because  of  interest   in 

business 206-207 

Great  progress  made  in  other  educational  fields  .  207-208 
Importance  of  instruction  in  qualities  necessary  to 

adapt  man  to  present  age 208 

Too  much  reliance  on  laws  for  remedying  evils     .     .  209 

More  should  be  left  to  discretion  of  school  officers  210 

The  spirit  the  important  thing  in  education     .     .     .  210-21 1 

Index 213 


THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 


THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

I 

THE   COUNTRY   COMMUNITY 
^-''-  o  o  O 
Characteristics. — There    are    characteristics    in 

environment  that  have  a  marked  effect  upon  the 
life,  the  employments,  the  ideals,  the  standards, 
and  the  characters  of  the  people  that  have  normal 
and  natural  surroundings.  The  country  has  its 
blessings,  its  benefits,  and  its  helpfulness  that  de- 
serve to  be  appreciated,  and  it  has  likewise  its 
restrictions,  its  limitations,  and  its  hindrances 
that  must  be  overcome.  What  any  single  country; 
community  has  become  has  depended  entirely  upon  \ 
the  energy,  the  intellectuality,  and  the  morality  of 
its  people.  What  results  have  come  to  the  youth 
that  have  been  brought  up  in  any  such  community 
has  depended  upon  the  opportunities  conferred, 
the  privileges  granted,  the  social  training  imposed, 
and  the  standards  of  living  exacted.  The  country 
can  be  better  than  the  town  in  its  ideals,  in  its 
notions  of  outcome  of  effort,  and  in  its  conceptions 
of  things  to  be  undertaken,  because  its  population 

is  much  more  homogeneous  in  accomplishments, 

3 


4  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

much  more  uniform  in  prosperity,  and  much  more 
equal  in  opportunities  to  get  ahead  in  the  world 
than  are  the  populations  of  the  city  or  the  town. 

Factors. — When  progress,  development,  and  wel- 
fare are  to  be  considered  as  the  necessary  heritage 
of  any  community,  then  the  recognition  must  be 
reached  that  there  are  several  factors  concerned 
and  that  all  of  them  must  contribute  their  pro- 
portion of  effort,  wisdom,  time,  or  money  for  the 
public  good.  Social  life  is  therefore  organized  as 
to  territory  included,  as  to  authority  conferred 
upon  those  who  have  the  right  to  decide,  as  to  the 
officials  that  are  appointed  to  carry  out  the  public 
will,  as  to  the  co-operation  of  those  to  be  bene- 
fited, and  as  to  the  service  of  those  who  are  to  be 
employed  to  secure  the  ends  desired  by  this  public 
combination  of  effort.  These  factors  are  always 
important,  always  necessary,  always  reliable,  and 
always  effective. 

The  School  District. — The  unit  of  school  man- 
agement in  a  local  sense  consists  of  a  school  dis- 
trict. This  territory  is  so  organized  and  set  apart 
because  the  people  who  live  therein  have  known 
common  interests,  and  therefore  should  have  the 
spirit  of  co-operation.  The  school  district  in  pop- 
ular government  is  a  large  factor  in  deciding  what 
shall  constitute  the  standards  and  the  undertak- 
ings in  education.     The  people  need  to  be  wide 


THE  COUNTRY  COMMUNITY  5 

awake  to  every  interest  that  contributes  to  the 
welfare  of  the  whole  community,  and,  since  hap- 
piness, usefulness,  and  prosperity  depend  very 
largely  upon  intelligence,  morals,  and  culture,  it 
becomes  a  matter  of  self-preservation  to  have  good 
schools.  In  the  United  States  public-school  edu- 
cation is  commonly  left  to  the  local  community, 
and  experience  has  proved  that  this  plan  is  wise 
and  good  if  the  people  recognize  the  value  and  the 
importance  of  education  to  society  as  a  whole  and 
to  individuals  in  particular. 

The  Electors. — Each  school  district  has  a  system 
of  political  management  whereby  an  annual  meet- 
ing of  electors  is  held  in  order  to  vote  for  school 
officers,  called  directors  or  members  of  the  school 
board,  and  to  decide  other  matters  of  business 
that  are  authorized  by  law.  The  persons  who 
have  the  right  to  vote  on  these  questions  are  called 
electors.  The  qualifications  exacted  by  law  are 
the  same  as  are  required  of  all  voters  at  the  general 
national  and  State  elections.  These  electors  have 
large  responsibilities  that  are  not  always  appreci- 
ated or  realized,  as  it  is  made  their  duty  to  select 
for  members  of  the  school  board  the  kind  of  per- 
sons that  are  qualified  in  spirit  and  in  training 
to  properly  and  successfully  conduct  the  schools. 
Much  of  the  success  or  the  failure  that  is  to  fol- 
low in  the  school  work  is  a  consequence  of  the 


6  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

prudence  or  carelessness,  and  the  conscientiousness 
or  indifference,  in  the  exercise  of  this  right  of  suf- 
frage by  these  electors.  These  voters  need  to  keep 
closely  in  touch  with  what  is  being  done  in  the 
schools:  they  should  know  whether  good,  strong 
teachers  are  employed;  they  should  be  acquainted 
with  the  spirit  and  enthusiasm  of  the  manage- 
ment; and  they  should  ascertain  what  could  be 
made  still  better  if  they  are  to  fulfil  completely 
the  function  of  their  patriotic  service  as  citizens. 
The  School  Board. — The  school  board  consists 
of  representative  citizens  who  are  selected  by  the 
electors  to  conduct  the  school,  because  they  are! 
recognized  as  worthy  of  such  trust  and  are  sup- 
posed to  be  competent  to  so  conduct  the  under- 
taking as  to  give  the  necessary  returns  for  the  in- 
vestment made  in  the  money  of  the  tax-payers 
and  in  the  time  of  the  children  who  attend  the 
school.  These  school  directors  or  committeemen 
are  the  agents  of  the  people  of  the  community 
and  are  not  supposed  to  consult  their  own  inter- 
ests or  their  own  needs.  They  are  to  regard  the  * 
welfare  of  all  and  hence  must  recognize  dut}^  as 
paramount  to  pleasure  and  good  schools  as  the  aim 
of  their  ultimate  endeavor.  The  only  basis  of 
economy  that  they  are  authorized  to  enforce  is 
that  kind  of  liberal  investment  that  gives  the  V 
youth  the  best  opportunities  of  the  present  age. 


THE  COUNTRY  COMMUNITY  7 

The  Patrons. — The  people  who  have  children  to 
send  to  school,  and  who  give  them  the  privilege  of 
education,  constitute  the  patrons.  They  may  or 
may  not  be  tax-payers,  they  may  or  may  not  be 
electors,  they  may  or  may  not  have  a  knowledge 
of  what  education  should  be,  they  may  or  may  not 
be  competent  to  decide  the  important  problems  to 
be  solved,  yet  they  all  have  rights,  duties,  and  re- 
sponsibilities that  are  necessary  to  be  exercised  by 
them  if  they  are  to  receive  the  full  opportunity  of 
patrons  while  they  have  a  claim  for  fair  dealing, 
for  helpful  consideration,  and  for  recognition  as 
citizens  that  should  never  be  overlooked  by  those 
in  authority.  The  comprehension  of  these  rela- 
tionships on  the  part  of  all  concerned  will  go  far 
toward  establishing  conditions  that  make  good 
schools  a  genuine  possibility. 

The  Pupils. — There  is  a  province  of  education 
that  belongs  exclusively  to  those  for  whom  the 
school  is  organized  and  conducted.  It  must  never 
be  forgotten  that  civilization  has  founded  schools 
for  the  sole  benefit  of  the  children  and  youth  that 
are  soon  to  assume  the  difficult  responsibilities  of 
citizenship,  and  that  there  would  be  no  need  for 
such  an  institution  in  society  if  there  were  no 
children  and  youth.  As  soon  as  the  early  years 
have  passed,  so  that  discretion  permits  a  reasonable 
recognition  of  personal   responsibility,  that  soon 


8  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

it  should  be  established  in  the  minds  of  all  pu- 
pils that  a  beneficent  civilization  has  provided  all 
these  advantages  and  opportunities  as  a  free  gift 
for  their  preparation  and  training  for  a  successful 
career  in  after  life.  Too  frequently  the  pupils 
have  wrong  views  of  the  object  of  the  school;  too 
commonly  they  assume  that  all  this  organized 
effort  is  to  disciphne  and  coerce  them  instead  of 
benevolently  to  help  them;  and  too  generally  they 
put  their  strength  and  their  capabihty  in  opposi- 
tion to  the  great  plans  that  have  been  created  for 
their  development  and  efficiency  in  order  that  they 
may  defeat  the  object  and  the  purpose  of  all  this 
endeavor. 

The  Teacher. — The  last  factor  in  the  commu- 
nity that  has  a  large  part  in  educational  endeavor 
is  the  teacher,  the  active  personahty  that  is  se- 
cured by  the  school  board  to  carry  out  the  aims 
and  the  wishes  of  the  community.  This  person 
is  selected  because  he  represents  that  he  has  the 
qualifications  that  the  work  of  teaching  children 
and  youth  demands.  He  is  supposed  to  have  the 
necessary  scholarship,  the  real  personahty,  the  ac- 
quired training,  the  magnanimity  of  spirit,  the 
knowledge  of  human  nature,  the  qualities  of  self- 
control,  and  the  capability  of  instruction  that 
such  a  calling  as  teaching  exacts.  All  the  other 
things  are  preliminary  to  this  contact  of  the  teacher 


THE  COUNTRY  COMMUNITY  9 

with  the  pupils,  all  the  other  factors  are  co-opera- 
tors, the  teacher  is  the  constructor  and  the  creator 
of  what  is  regarded  as  success  in  educational 
work.  He  is  the  living  personality  that  inspires 
enthusiasm,  that  compels  love  to  be  given,  and 
that  arouses  activity  of  intellect  and  emotion  to 
succeed  in  the  joint  undertaking  that  pupils  and 
teachers  are  united  in  accomplishing. 

The  Harmony  of  Work. — The  community  can 
only  secure  these  results  by  a  development  of 
harmony  and  co-operation.  All  the  factors  in- 
volved must  be  of  one  mind  and  one  heart.  There 
can  be  no  prosperous  school  unless  there  is  peace 
and  union  of  effort  among  all  concerned,  and  a 
decisive  endeavor  that  seeks  the  largest  returns 
with  the  least  expenditure.  To  this  end  all  must 
labor,  all  must  sacrifice,  all  must  yield,  all  must 
hope.  There  can  be  no  division  of  sentiment, 
there  can  be  no  lack  of  confidence  and  faith,  there 
can  be  no  conflict  of  authority,  there  can  be  no 
doubt  of  intentions,  if  the  good  of  the  community 
is  to  be  secured  and  the  plan  of  society  for  its 
amelioration  and  prosperity  is  to  be  consistently 
developed  and  reaUzed. 


II 

THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

The  Distinctive  Mark. — There  is  no  cause  for 
any  apology  for  the  necessary  peculiarities  of  the 
country  school.  It  is  what  it  is,  and  it  can  be  what 
it  can  be,  because  of  these  very  individual  char- 
acteristics that  are  sometimes  unnecessarily  de- 
plored by  those  who  do  not  recognize  the  effi- 
ciency and  the  strength  of  its  position  as  a  factor 
in  civilization.  The  distinctive  mark  of  a  coun- 
try school  is  its  normal  and  natural  environment. 
It  has  thus  far  escaped  the  devitalizing  influences 
that  the  artificial  and  the  conventional  can  pro- 
duce. It  is  strictly  original  in  its  characteristics 
and  decidedly  individual  in  its  work  and  its  de- 
velopment. Its  strength  lies  in  its  closeness  to 
nature,  in  its  practical  relation  to  the  every-day 
occupations  of  every  one,  and  in  its  possibilities 
for  simplicity,  sincerity,  and  sanity.  The  char- 
acter of  its  applications  is  always  thoroughly  prac- 
tical, and  the  development  of  its  training  is  always 
efficient  and  result-giving. 

No  Second  Place. — Its  province  and  opportu- 
nity is  not  that  of  subordination  or  inferiority,  but 

10 


THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL  11 

of  co-ordination  with  actual  life  and  superiority  in 
its  privileges  and  its  opportunities.  Its  pupils  are 
particularly  blessed  by  the  things  that  they  do  not 
know  ahead  of  their  time  as  much  as  they  are 
by  the  things  they  do  know  about  earning  a  living 
and  about  occupying  their  time  in  useful  activities. 
The  custom  of  being  assigned  some  regular  part 
of  the  work  of  the  home  and  of  the  farm  for  which 
to  be  responsible  is  permitted  the  country  child 
early  in  his  development.  Such  training  in  ser- 
vice for  the  good  of  the  family  interests  without 
individual  remuneration  is  extremely  valuable,  as 
it  teaches  co-operation  rather  than  selfishness,  and 
altruism  rather  than  individuahsm.  The  country 
school  has  thereby  a  first  place  in  the  community, 
as  it  is  recognized  as  being  one  of  the  greater  un- 
dertakings of  the  people  as  a  whole. 

The  Province  of  the  Practical. — In  no  other 
school  does  the  practical  hold  so  large  a  place  or 
receive  as  ready  a  response  from  its  pupils.  This 
is  due  to  the  fact  that  they  are  prepared  by  home 
training  and  by  the  necessities  surrounding  their 
hves  to  place  a  right  valuation  upon  the  kinds  of 
culture  and  of  preparation  that  make  them  ser- 
viceable representatives  in  society.  To  them, 
everybody  should  be  an  industrious  contributor  to 
the  common  good  as  well  as  to  his  own  personal 
prosperity,  and  hence  the)^  accept  the  practical 


12  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

in  their  training  as  natural  and  appropriate  as 
well  as  essential.  The  ver)^  occupations  in  which 
they  are  engaged  require  a  study  in  an  elementary 
way  of  many  arts  and  sciences  and  continually 
emphasize  with  them  the  necessity  of  more  knowl- 
edge and  more  applications  of  judgment.  The 
kind  of  information  and  scholarship  in  which  they 
are  most  interested  is  not  the  speculative  nor  the 
literary  because  the  necessities  they  are  compelled 
to  meet  demand  practical  aims  and  immediate 
results.  This  kind  of  knowledge  may  not  con- 
stitute a  part  of  the  programme  of  studies  of  the 
college  or  the  university,  nor  of  the  standard  liter- 
ary high  school,  but  it  is  of  larger  importance  to 
the  industrial  classes  of  the  people  than  the  knowl- 
edge that  such  institutions  are  founded  to  give. 
Knowledge  is  not  to  be  condemned  because  it  is 
speculative  and  professional  any  more  than  be- 
cause it  is  practical  and  usable,  but  it  is  always 
necessary  to  recognize  that  each  kind  of  knowledge 
has  its  place  and  its  utility  in  the  civilization  of 
the  world. 

The  Adaptation  to  the  Life  of  the  People. — Edu- 
cation conducted  by  the  people  for  the  benefit  of 
the  people  always  consists  of  an  adaptation  to  the 
persons  being  educated  so  that  they  are  being  pre- 
pared to  become  more  and  more  effective  in  their 
happiness  and  their  prosperity.     The  work  of  the 


THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL  13 

farmer  cannot  be  successfully  compared  as  to  im- 
portance with  that  of  the  merchant  or  the  law- 
yer, because  there  is  a  lack  of  sufficient  similarity. 
Each  of  them  is  necessary  to  civilization  and  each 
has  a  province  to  fulfil  that  cannot  be  omitted 
and  civilization  be  complete.  Special  education 
is  now  recognized  as  a  sensible  solution  of  the 
training  of  the  varieties  of  talent  that  exists  in 
the  masses.  Most  individuals  could  succeed  in 
several  occupations,  since  application,  study,  and 
fideHty  would  enable  them  to  secure  creditable  re- 
sults in  either  one  of  these  they  may  select,  but 
the  average  person  has  not  time  enough  to  follow 
to  much  advantage  several  occupations  to  which  he 
may  be  adapted  by  interest  and  by  qualifications. 
Hence,  most  persons  wisely  select  some  one  call- 
ing to  which  they  devote  their  time,  their  thought, 
and  their  endeavor.  By  so  doing  they  succeed 
in  making  comfortable  livings  and  in  developing 
creditable  reputations.  Hence,  country-school  ed- 
ucation should  glory  in  country  life,  country  occu- 
pations, and  country  possibihties  because  there  are 
no  opportunities  offered  a  youth  that  guarantee 
as  much  average  prosperity,  as  much  average 
comfort,  and  as  much  average  chance  for  reason- 
able success  and  happiness. 

The     Need    for    Intellectual     Culture.— While 
adaptability  to  the  practical  is  essential  in  country- 


14  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

school  education,  yet  in  planning  to  accept  such  a 
conclusion  there  is  no  need  to  deprive  such  pupils 
of  intellectual  culture  equivalent  to  that  given  city 
pupils.  Country  pupils  are  as  capable  of  learning 
history,  science,  mathematics,  music,  and  art  as 
are  city  pupils.  They  have  just  as  much  hunger 
for  the  intellectual  and  the  instructional,  for  the 
profound  and  the  philosophical,  for  the  national 
and  the  world  type,  for  the  artistic  and  the  sub- 
lime, because  their  world  of  experience  is  even 
broader  and  deeper  and  more  normal  than  the 
majority  of  those  that  live  among  the  experiences 
that  are  man-made  and  thereby  conventional  and 
artificial.  Because  the  practical,  the  expedient, 
and  the  temporary  are  always  present  and  always 
needing  attention,  their  capability  for  language, 
Hterature,  politics,  society,  or  the  fine  arts  is  not 
thereby  Hmited.  In  fact,  the  very  hmitations 
that  the  common  life  of  the  country  pupils  seems 
to  possess  are  the  very  reasons  that  cause  them  to 
leave  their  environment  and  enter  upon  activities 
that  bring  actual  greatness  and  real  distinction. 

The  Importance  of  the  Habit  of  Industry. — Of 
all  the  fortunate  experience  that  can  come  to  a 
child's  early  life,  the  habit  of  industry  is  of  the 
greatest  lasting  importance.  Its  application  to 
every  phase  of  business  and  of  enterprise  is  self- 
evident.     To  have  learned  to  work  and  to  enjoy 


THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL  15 

work,  to  have  acquired  a  feeling  of  dissatisfaction 
with  idleness  and  indifference,  to  have  attained 
to  a  condition  where  definite  results  are  neces- 
sary to  happiness  and  contentment,  is  a  state  of 
mind  and  personal  being  that  defines  opportunity 
as  success  and  possibility  as  reality.  One  of  the 
saddest  experiences  that  many  healthy  children 
suffer  is  that  of  not  having  an  opportunity  for  a 
normal  response  to  their  natural  want  for  produc- 
tive occupation.  This  want  is  fully  supplied  in 
country  life.  There  is  work  suitable  to  the  power 
and  the  strength  of  the  youngest  pupils,  there  is 
abundant  opportunity  for  them  to  engage  in  pro- 
ductive activities,  there  are  privileges  to  use  judg- 
ment and  to  practise  experiments,  there  is  chance 
to  study  and  to  invent,  there  is  abundance  of  ser- 
vice for  initiative  and  for  testing  to  the  fullest  ex- 
tent, and  hence  energy  is  used  in  sensible  ways 
and  skill  is  trained  to  a  wonderful  extent,  while 
character  is  developed  and  personality  is  ex- 
panded. The  marvellousness  of  these  things  is 
easily  realized  by  those  whose  pupils  have  had 
such  training  and  such  experiences. 


Ill 

COUNTRY  LIFE 

Characteristics. — Country  life  is  specially  strong 
in  things  utilitarian.  It  is  equally  strong  in  types 
that  are  physical  and  experimental,  as  such  life 
gives  opportunities  to  test  everything  and  come 
to  conclusions  by  synthetic  processes,  so  that  such 
persons  have  natural  daily  training  in  inductive 
reasoning.  This  is  more  or  less  empirical  and  may 
be  lacking  in  enough  varieties  of  examples,  but 
the  experience  obtained  from  year  to  year  has  the 
effect  of  modifying  conclusions  reached  too  hastily 
and  gradually  gives  a  body  of  knowledge  that  is 
extremely  valuable  to  the  possessor  in  his  after 
studies  in  secondary  school  and  college.  The  edu- 
cation thus  obtained  is  broader  in  many  respects 
than  is  sometimes  realized  because  the  persons 
who  attempt  to  investigate  frequently  have  nei- 
ther knowledge  nor  experience  to  do  justice  by 
such  acquirements.  In  the  country  vocational 
training  includes  the  elements  of  agriculture,  horti- 
culture, stock-breeding,  grain  and  stock  judging, 
soil-judging,  the  use  of  fertilizers,  buying  and  sell- 
ing the  products  of  the  farm,  garden,  dairy,  poul- 

10 


COUNTRY  LIFE  17 

try  yard,  and  other  resources,  exchanging  products 
in  the  general  store  or  in  the  grocery  for  family 
supplies,  and  numerous  other  kinds  of  business 
like  the  handling  of  tools,  skill  in  using  farm  ma- 
chinery, economy  in  the  care  of  all  things  be- 
longing to  the  family,  and  many  other  activities 
that  cannot  here  be  enumerated  but  all  of  which 
contribute  largely  to  the  benefit  of  boys  and  girls 
that  are  thus  environed  by  the  strange  things  of 
nature  and  the  urgent  demands  of  labor. 

Benefits  of  Experience. — There  is  no  kind  of 
teaching  more  effective  than  experience.  In  this 
respect  the  country  children  are  happily  blessed 
by  everything  that  attracts  them  and  their  inter- 
ests. They  learn  about  the  birds  and  the  beasts 
and  their  habits  and  relations  to  each  other  and 
to  the  farmer.  They  acquire  information  about 
insects  that  are  injurious  to  the  garden,  the  stock, 
and  the  orchard,  and  are  taught  how  to  de- 
stroy them  and  thus  protect  the  products  of  labor 
from  damage  and  destruction.  They  are  trained 
in  the  use  of  the  implements  of  husbandry  and 
obtain  skill  in  the  various  occupations  and  indus- 
tries that  constitute  a  part  of  their  daily  contribu- 
tion in  labor  for  the  family  welfare.  They  learn 
these  practical  duties  without  knowing  that  they 
are  actually  receiving  practical  education  and  that 
they   are   acquiring   a    capability   in   using   their 


18  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

senses  and  their  muscles  as  well  as  their  judgment, 
because  their  relationship  to  the  family  as  co- 
workers is  the  most  effective  plan  of  training  that 
can  be  desired. 

Salary  Not  an  Object. — While  these  things  are 
in  progress  and  their  training  is  being  perfected  in 
this  large  and  effective  way,  development  of  char- 
acter, of  ability  in  industry,  of  love  for  occupation, 
of  co-operation  with  others,  and  of  respect  for 
superiors  and  elders  is  accomplished.  It  is  nota- 
bly true  that  children  who  Hve  with  and  work  with 
their  fathers  and  mothers  secure  a  respect  and  an 
esteem  for  them  and  for  their  acquirements  that 
could  never  be  realized  without  such  associations 
and  experiences.  In  addition  to  that,  this  working 
for  the  common  good  of  the  family  without  an  eye 
to  personal  gain  or  pay  for  services,  this  recogni- 
tion of  being  a  member  of  the  family  that  is  con- 
ducting this  business,  this  knowing  that  in  the  end 
they  will  have  their  share  of  the  profits  and  accu- 
mulations that  the  family  possess,  this  fact  that 
the  results  of  success  are  more  truly  for  the  benefit 
of  the  children  than  for  the  older  members  of  the 
family,  contribute  more  largely  to  a  proper  training 
in  social  attitude  and  moral  helpfulness  than  any 
other  system  of  training  can  produce.  This  kind 
of  appeal  is  more  altruistic  than  selfish,  the  tie 
is  more  for  the  home  than  for  other  associations, 


COUNTRY  LIFE  19 

and  the  hope  of  personal  prominence  and  distinc- 
tion is  based  more  upon  love  and  helpfulness  than 
upon  personal  ambition  for  greatness. 

The  Social  Needs. — Country  life  can  be  barren 
in  social  opportunity  and  social  training  and  hence 
fail  in  developing  a  balance  and  an  equilibrium 
that  mature  life  particularly  needs.  This  condi- 
tion often  occurs  among  the  best  people  in  coun- 
try communities  and  easily  dissatisfies  spirited 
young  people  with  the  kind  of  employment  and 
activities  that  country  hfe  affords.  Such  a  con- 
dition is  unnecessary  as  well  as  undesirable.  Such 
a  situation  should  be  relieved  because  it  drives 
many  intelligent  people  into  cities  and  towns  at  the 
expense  of  their  real  prosperity,  in  order  that  they 
may  get  relief  from  the  monotony  and  the  tension 
in  which  they  lived  in  the  country.  They  sacri- 
fice a  success  that  is  real  and  an  independence  that 
is  genuine  to  have  their  social  hunger  relieved  and 
their  opportunities  for  entertainment  increased. 
To  remedy  such  an  unfortunate  state  of  affairs 
as  this  is  not  impossible,  to  provide  recreation 
that  is  wholesome  and  beneficial  is  not  at  all  diffi- 
cult, while  to  give  a  social  training  to  all  is  a 
matter  that  should  not  be  overlooked  by  those  who 
recognize  the  benefits  of  such  experiences  to  happi- 
ness and  contentment.  The  solution  of  such  a 
mixed    problem   should    not   be   postponed    until 


20  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

wealth  is  increased,  until  more  time  can  be  with- 
drawn from  work  without  loss  to  business,  nor  un- 
til the  older  people  feel  a  distinct  need  for  a  change 
in  custom  and  in  practice. 

The  Young  Have  Rights. — That  there  are  rights 
and  duties  connected  with  social  opportunities  and 
activities  should  be  fully  realized.  One's  mental 
condition  is  better  when  it  is  recognized  that  a 
human  being  has  a  social  nature  as  well  as  a  moral 
and  religious  nature,  that  his  success  in  his  career 
depends  very  much  upon  his  whole  personality 
being  used  in  sane  and  normal  ways,  and  that  dis- 
use and  neglect  can  arrest  development.  A  fair 
study  of  human  needs  and  possibihties  will  always 
give  a  more  rational  treatment  of  these  conditions 
caused  by  environment.  Country  life  can  be  made 
the  most  interesting  and  the  most  attractive  be- 
cause it  is  the  most  normal  and  the  most  inde- 
pendent. 


IV 

WHAT  EDUCATION  CAN  DO 

Definition. — Schools  are  organized,  equipped, 
and  conducted  for  the  purpose  of  giving  an  oppor- 
tunity to  secure  an  education.  The  studies,  the 
employments,  and  the  exercises  taught  in  them 
are  selected  because  of  their  assumed  usefulness  in 
producing  full  development,  positive  culture,  and 
efficient  training.  The  real  work  that  the  pupils 
do  for  themselves  constitutes  the  actual  benefits 
that  are  obtainable,  giving  the  mental  results  that 
well-qualified,  well-trained  persons  believe  to  be 
essential  to  the  needs  of  modern  civilization.  Self- 
reHance,  independent  accomplishment,  and  con- 
tinuous application  transfer  ability  into  capability 
and  expand  the  personality  of  the  pupils  so  that 
they  are  greatly  superior  in  every  individual  way 
to  what  they  could  have  been  had  the  strenuous 
and  continuous  efforts  required  by  the  school  been 
omitted.  One  of  the  best  elementary  definitions 
for  the  meaning  of  education  was  given  by  James 
Sully:  "In  spite  of  ethical  and  theological  differ- 
ences, it  can  be  said  that  education  seeks  by  social 
stimulus,  guidance,  and  control  to  develop  the  nat- 

21 


22  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

ural  powers  of  the  child  so  as  to  render  him  able 
and  disposed  to  lead  a  healthy,  happy,  and  morally 
worthy  life." 

The  Conclusion. — In  this  definition  it  is  posi- 
tively recognized  that  it  does  matter  what  kind 
of  result  an  education  gives.  The  character  and 
the  life  of  the  one  who  has  gone  through  the  proc- 
esses and  undergone  the  influences  of  a  school 
should  be  of  a  decided  type  so  far  as  regard  for  the 
body,  the  mind,  or  the  soul  is  concerned.  There 
should  be  no  question  of  the  physical  sanity  of  the 
person  as  exhibited  in  his  habits,  conduct,  and 
behavior.  He  should  look  upon  his  body  as  a 
sacred  object  that  must  not  be  debased,  depraved, 
or  destroyed  by  folly,  by  passion,  or  by  crime. 
Health  is  of  such  great  importance  to  a  career, 
happiness  of  mind  and  heart  is  so  dominant  a 
force  in  determining  the  outcome,  and  moral 
worthiness  is  so  prominent  in  usefulness,  helpful- 
ness, and  eflPectiveness  that  no  compromise  from 
these  standards  is  possible.  If  the  teacher  does 
not  find  these  characteristics  developing  in  his 
pupils,  it  becomes  his  bounden  duty  to  use  every 
means  within  his  power  to  bring  about  such 
changes  in  action  and  such  reforms  in  motive  that 
the  personality  and  the  life  conform  to  these  cor- 
rect standards  of  education.  Scholarship,  power, 
capability,  and  effectiveness,  even  when  present  in 


WHAT  EDUCATION  CAN  DO  23 

business  or  in  profession,  are  nothing  of  value  as 
compared  to  character. 

Ability  and  Disposition. — There  is  more  abihty 
in  the  human  family  to  be  good  and  true  and  honor- 
able than  there  is  disposition  to  show  these  traits. 
There  is  more  ability  to  be  a  scholar,  to  be  a  me- 
chanic, to  be  a  pubHc  official  of  the  highest  rank 
and  quality  than  there  is  disposition  to  put  forth 
the  effort  and  make  the  sacrifices  that  such  a  re- 
sult requires.  In  order  to  make  ability  into  a  new 
product,  capability,  there  is  required  much  en- 
deavor and  a  decidedly  unrelenting  spirit  on  the 
part  of  individuals  seeking  success,  distinction, 
and  recognition.  Working  industriously  in  school 
becomes  a  good  habit  which  is  a  permanent  ben- 
efit throughout  all  after  life  because  the  develop- 
ment of  good  habits  makes  after  application  and 
successive  diligent  purpose  comparatively  easy. 
In  the  same  way  idleness,  indifference,  and  dila- 
toriness  become  such  harmful  habits  that  there 
is  little  hope  of  inducing  reform  for  the  person 
acquiring  them,  since  this  condition  of  worthless- 
ness  and  indolence  becomes  actually  enjoyable 
and  permanently  satisfactory  to  him.  It  is  for 
such  reasons  that  the  teacher  should  use  every 
means  and  effort  to  secure  for  pupils  success  in 
their  school  work,  as  the  success  habit  is  a  pow- 
erful influence  in  keeping  application  ahve  and 


24  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

energy  effective.  Success,  and  success  alone,  satis- 
fies such  as  are  prepared  by  training  and  by  edu- 
cation to  expect  it.  Failure  is  a  negative  result, 
which,  by  bad  training  and  worse  treatment,  be- 
comes such  a  common  experience  that  anything 
different  can  hardly  be  appreciated.  The  realiza- 
tion of  one's  powers,  the  knowledge  of  one's  gifts, 
the  possession  of  one's  skill  and  attainments  are 
all  notable  acquirements  that  can  never  be  over- 
estimated. True  teachers  should  never  undertake 
to  excuse  themselves  when  they  know  that  their 
pupils  have  tendencies  and  prospects  that  are 
unfortunate  and  unpromising.  As  long  as  the 
relation  of  teacher  and  pupil  continues,  heroic 
endeavors  should  be  put  forth  to  develop  better 
conditions  and  more  hopeful  possibilities. 

The  Social  Side. — There  is  a  powerful  social 
influence  developed  by  bringing  pupils  together 
in  school  and  class  activities.  Comparison  and 
competition  are  always  permanent  factors  in  en- 
abling more  to  be  done  than  could  otherwise  be 
obtained.  It  is  thus  that  social  relations  produce 
a  stimulus  to  better  efforts  because  a  child  desires 
to  stand  well  in  the  opinion  of  his  associates,  and 
hence  he  makes  the  endeavor  to  prove  his  fitness 
for  their  endorsement  and  their  compliments.  By 
such  means  the  well-conducted  school  attains  a 
power  for  good  and  for  development  that  may  be 


WHAT  EDUCATION  CAN  DO  25 

overlooked.  It  is  for  this  reason  that  good  man- 
agement and  good  teaching  are  such  paramount 
forces  in  bringing  notable  results.  In  the  same 
way,  though  with  different  effects,  the  popular 
and  successful  teacher  has  great  ability  in  direct- 
ing and  controlling  the  pupils  when  at  work.  In 
the  right  conditions  direction  and  control  on  the 
part  of  the  teacher  are  always  acceptable  and  ca- 
pable. Here  is  where  intelligence,  scholarship, 
knowledge  of  human  nature,  and  skill  as  an  in- 
structor all  play  a  great  part  in  bringing  results 
that  would  otherwise  be  impossible.  The  social 
side  of  the  school  has  a  decisive  effect  in  securing 
perfect  attendance,  punctuality,  good  lessons,  and 
application  to  the  tasks  assigned. 

The  Country  Environment. — In  the  study  of 
these  things  it  must  be  recognized  that  the  coun- 
try boy  and  girl  have  a  great  advantage  provid- 
ing they  are  surrounded  by  normal  conditions. 
There  is,  then,  every  reason  to  encourage  ambi- 
tion, inspire  enthusiasm,  and  cultivate  prosperity, 
the  most  important  factors  of  permanent  success. 
Education  from  this  stand-point  is  life  itself  and 
not  preparation  for  life;  it  is  the  experience  that 
a  developing,  expanding,  improving  personality 
must  have,  and  hence  it  is  neither  artificial,  im- 
material, nor  unsatisfactory.  The  country  school 
prospers  when  this  attitude  toward  civilization  is 


26  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

comprehended  and  assumed,  when  this  endeavor 
to  accomplish  is  in  the  spirit  of  the  people  them- 
selves, and  when  teachers  and  study  and  expen- 
ditures in  the  training  of  youth  are  all  assumed 
to  be  the  most  important  investments  that  hu- 
manity can  make. 


THE  ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  SCHOOL 

The  Past. — Systems  of  keeping  records  of  the 
progress  of  the  pupils  have  been  adopted  by  school 
superintendents  and  school  boards  in  order  to 
have  the  new  teachers  know  the  past  attendance, 
progress,  and  success  of  the  pupils  enrolled  in  the 
schools.  These  records  may  or  may  not  be  valu- 
able, all  depending  upon  the  care  and  the  capabil- 
ity with  which  they  have  been  kept  and  their  cor- 
rectness as  to  the  condition  of  scholarship  and 
attainments  that  the  pupils  have  acquired.  Unless 
these  records  show  the  exact  facts  they  are  useless 
to  the  superintendent,  the  school  board,  and  even 
to  the  teacher.  As  it  happens,  there  is  more  or 
less  lack  of  interest  in  being  exact  in  coming  to  the 
conclusions  that  are  to  be  recorded,  and  equally  a 
common  disposition  to  be  careless  because  the 
teacher  assumes  that  these  records  are  useless  and 
that  they  are  required  simply  to  comply  with  law 
and  with  the  regulations  of  the  system  adopted 
by  the  county  superintendent  or  with  needless  re- 
quirements made  by  the  school  board.  Even 
when  the  largest  honesty  has  been  given  and  the 

27 


28  V       THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

greatest  care  has  been  shown,  yet  the  information 
is  not  of  a  kind  nor  of  a  quality  that  will  relieve 
the  new  teacher  of  the  necessity  of  completely  re- 
organizing and  reclassifying  the  school. 

The  Present. — A  country  school  of  any  term  is 
not  a  duplicate  of  either  its  predecessor  or  its  suc- 
cessor. Its  present  needed  work  depends  entirely 
upon  the  pupils  now  in  attendance,  and  its  pro- 
gramme of  classes  and  the  time  that  should  be  al- 
lotted are  positively  regulated  by  the  size  of  the 
several  classes  and  the  kind  of  lessons  now  to  be 
taught.  Hence,  a  teacher  must  thoroughly  in- 
vestigate the  qualifications,  the  capabilities,  and 
the  condition  of  knowledge  that  each  pupil  can 
show.  While  this  investigation  is  really  an  ex- 
amination in  every  line  of  work  maintained  by  the 
school,  yet  it  is  the  only  true  way  to  ascertain  the 
kind  of  work  at  the  outset  that  can  be  profitably 
offered  to  each  individual  pupil  and  the  place  in 
the  work  where  the  pupil  should  begin.  The  old- 
time  country  school  of  years  ago  started  every 
pupil  every  term  at  the  very  first  lesson  in  reading, 
arithmetic,  grammar,  geography,  and  history  in 
the  text-books.  This  was  not  a  bad  plan,  if  dis- 
cretion and  judgment  were  carefully  used,  because 
as  much  progress  was  permitted  from  day  to  day 
as  the  present  knowledge  of  the  pupils  allowed. 
Such  a  plan  of  reviewing  the  fundamentals  was 


THE  ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  SCHOOL       29 

very  valuable  provided  the  important  and  basic 
things  were  selected  and  the  comprehension  was 
taken  as  a  guide  to  the  teacher's  assignment  of 
the  work  to  be  done. 

The  Basic  Subjects. — In  all  primary  classes 
reading  constitutes  the  basic  subject  in  determin- 
ing classification.  This  is  due  to  the  fact  that 
every  other  subject  taught  to  the  pupils  of  this  age 
and  development  depends  for  success  very  largely 
upon  the  ability  to  read.  Number  work,  language 
lessons,  nature  studies,  history  and  geography 
studies,  and  all  other  phases  of  information  in- 
struction depend  upon  the  success  that  the  pupil 
has  in  getting  knowledge  from  the  printed  page. 
Hence,  all  elementary  text-books  in  arithmetic, 
science,  and  history  are  prepared  as  a  variable 
kind  of  reading-books,  in  order  to  give  the  pupil 
the  opportunity  to  master  the  art  of  reading.  In 
all  the  more  advanced  classes  arithmetic  consti- 
tutes an  important  basic  subject  because  there 
is  a  dependence  of  one  part  upon  the  part  that 
has  gone  before  and  hence  there  is  a  regular 
sequence  that  cannot  be  omitted.  This  is  not 
equally  true  with  geography,  history,  or  other  in- 
formational studies,  as  the  entire  omission  of  some 
chapters  and  parts  does  not  interfere  materially 
with  a  pupil's  taking  up  succeeding  chapters  or 
parts    that   occur  in    the    text-books.     For    these 


30  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

reasons  reading  and  arithmetic  become  the  basis 
of  almost  all  classification  that  it  is  necessary  to 
make  in  this  class  of  schools. 

Grading. — Plans  and  systems  of  grading  coun- 
try schools  have  been  frequently  recommended  as 
being  helpful  in  producing  a  more  satisfactory 
condition  of  the  work.  For  the  average  coun- 
try school  classification  is  desirable  and  possible, 
while  grading  is  to  be  considered  as  more  theoreti- 
cal than  practical.  The  advocates  of  grading  as- 
sume that  class  instruction  is  superior  to  individual 
instruction,  and  that  the  so-called  graded  school 
is  notably  a  better  school  than  a  country  school. 
Now,  grading  is  necessary  in  the  crowded  city 
school  for  the  purpose  of  managing  the  work 
economically,  and  just  for  a  similar  reason  classi- 
fication— the  putting  of  each  pupil  in  each  branch 
of  study  where  he  belongs — is  just  as  essential  in 
a  country  school.  A  reasonably  close  classifica- 
tion gives  all  the  advantages  needed  to  both 
teacher  and  pupils,  and  the  progress  will  be  as 
rapid  as  the  capabilities  of  the  pupils  allow. 

Seating. — There  should  be  a  definite  plan  of 
seating  the  pupils  of  a  country  school,  conforming 
particularly  to  the  comfort  and  to  the  convenience 
of  all  concerned — the  larger  pupils  at  the  larger 
desks  and  the  smaller  pupils  at  the  smaller  desks, 
as  the  furniture  may  admit.     If  recitation  seats 


THE  ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  SCHOOL      31 

are  provided,  the  assignment  of  the  pupils  on  these 
for  each  class  should  depend  upon  the  eyesight  and 
the  hearing,  defective  conditions  needing  to  be 
specially  favored  by  receiving  this  special  atten- 
tion. All  seating  of  pupils  in  the  beginning  should 
be  temporary,  so  that  changes  may  be  made  at 
any  time  that  the  teacher  regards  it  necessary  for 
the  good  of  the  order  or  work  of  the  school.  A 
poHcy  of  allowing  pupils  to  feel  that  they  have 
some  special  rights  in  regard  to  seating  because 
they  were  there  the  earhest  the  first  morning,  or 
because  they  were  located  there  last  year,  or  any 
other  plan  is  not  desirable,  because  the  good  and 
the  right  of  all  should  be  the  final  basis  of  decision. 
Other  Arrangements. — There  are  many  other 
arrangements  that  the  teacher  should  manage  and 
control.  The  place  where  each  pupil  should  hang 
his  coat,  the  part  of  the  cupboard  'in  which  he 
should  place  his  dinner  basket,  the  place  where  he 
should  place  his  hat,  should  all  be  worked  out  in  a 
sensible,  convenient,  and  systematic  plan.  The 
way  that  pupils  should  make  requests  to  withdraw 
from  the  room  for  cause,  the  plan  of  allowing  them 
to  get  a  reference  book  or  a  diink  of  water,  the 
system  of  taking  their  books  out  of  the  desk  to 
begin  their  work,  the  best  method  of  returning 
these  books  to  the  desk  when  through  using  them, 
the  order  in  which  each  pupil's  books  should  be 


32  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

placed  on  each  other  in  the  desk,  together  with  all 
other  things  which  are  a  part  of  good  organization 
and  of  a  fair  and  complete  understanding,  should 
be  fully  comprehended  by  those  concerned.  It 
is  thus  that  the  conduct  of  the  school  becomes 
simple  and  systematic  at  the  very  opening  day, 
and  that  the  teacher's  executive  skill  and  ability 
are  recognized  and  accepted  by  all  the  pupils  as 
deserving  of  commendation. 

Stimulation. — Organization  has  as  its  positive 
end  the  stimulation  of  the  work  and  the  arousing 
of  interest.  A  school  is  a  place  for  the  pupils  to 
acquire  training,  not  to  be  mere  absorbers  of  what 
the  teacher  knows.  It  is  the  nursery  or  laboratory 
where  pupils  are  taught  to  do  things  by  actually 
doing  them,  and  when  that  is  done  enjoyment  is 
the  result,  progress  is  secured,  and  educational 
efforts  are  rewarded.  The  pupils  are  to  do  the 
talking,  the  reading,  the  thinking,  the  writing,  the 
drawing.  They  are  to  sing  the  songs,  to  recite 
the  poems,  to  tell  the  stories,  tp  draw  the  pictures, 
and  to  execute  the  exercises.  By  such  means 
their  intellectual  Hfe  is  strengthened,  their  moral 
life  is  developed,  and  the  capabihty  to  act  intelli- ' 
gently  and  prudently  becomes  what  is  called  char- 
acter and  personality. 


VI 

THE  SCHOOL  HOUSE  AND  GROUNDS 

The  Needs. — The  country  school  has  changed  in 
many  important  particulars  in  the  passing  of  a 
generation  because  of  the  revolution  that  has  come 
in  conditions,  necessities,  and  demands.  Where 
these  facts  have  been  recognized  and  proper  pro- 
vision made,  the  country  school  has  entered  upon 
a  new  chapter  in  history  and  is  fulfilUng  its  prov- 
ince as  the  handmaid  of  civilization.  The  pres- 
ent-day needs  have  made  the  country  school- 
house  the  centre  of  numerous  activities  that  must 
belong  to  the  community,  and  for  the  same  reason 
they  have  made  the  country  school-grounds  the 
demonstration  garden  or  farm  of  the  community. 
If  these  are  not  associated  with  the  school  work 
and  the  communal  hfe,  then  the  attempts  of  the 
school  are  barren  of  results  and  the  efforts  at  ed- 
ucation are  only  partial  and  incomplete.  These 
needs  must  be  apparent  to  every  wide-awake 
school  district,  because  it  is  possible  for  a  people 
to  do  as  a  mass  what  they  could  never  accom- 
plish fractionally  or  individually.  These  demon- 
stration gardens  have  become  a  necessity  for  the 

33 


34  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

pupils,  and  would  be  helpful  to  all  the  people,  be- 
cause they  are  the  laboratory  of  the  school  for 
agricultural  improvement  and  scientific  investi- 
gation. In  the  same  way  the  kind  of  school  build- 
ing that  should  be  provided  for  the  use  jointly  of 
the  school  and  of  the  people  is  a  much  broader 
and  more  important  question  than  has  been  thus 
far  supposed  by  the  majority  of  those  who  deter- 
mine the  public  interests. 

The  House.— The  old-fashioned  one-room  school- 
house,  limited  to  desks  and  blackboards,  cupboards 
and  heating  stove,  was  a  response  to  the  demands 
of  fifty  years  ago,  but  it  is  not  at  all  in  keeping  with 
the  progress  that  has  been  experienced  on  every 
hand  in  all  other  lines  of  social,  intellectual,  and  in- 
dustrial activity.  To-day  the  country  school-house 
needs  abundant  room  for  recitation,  for  assembly 
of  pupils  and  people,  for  recreation  purposes  for  all, 
for  laboratory  work  for  young  and  mature  ahke, 
and  for  demonstration  work  in  agriculture,  home 
economics,  and  all  lines  that  modern  education 
undertakes.  These  opportunities  must  be  pro- 
vided in  order  that  the  teaching  demanded  may 
be  possible  to  be  given  and  that  the  kind  of  prac- 
tical training  requested  may  be  able  to  be  secured. 
The  people  must  prepare  their  plans  as  large  as 
the  size  of  the  problem  to  be  undertaken,  and  they 
must  invest  in  such  means  and  privileges  that  the 


THE  SCHOOL  HOUSE  AND  GROUNDS       35 

school  can  actually  become  the  centre  of  com- 
munity interests,  endeavors,  and  activities.  With- 
out this,  progress  is  delayed  and  training  hindered. 
The  Scope. — Every  suitable  public-school  build- 
ing should  have  accommodations  for  the  people 
of  the  school  district,  such  rooms  as  will  permit 
them  to  have  lyceums,  farmers'  meetings,  lecture 
courses,  exhibits  of  products,  and  pubhc  discussion 
and  tests  of  all  problems  that  affect  their  work  and 
their  success.  Country  Hfe  to  be  happy  and  to  be 
satisfactor}^  must  have  opportunities  for  the  social 
development  and  culture  that  such  conveniences 
would  provide.  Such  opportunities  would  so  de- 
velop the  kind  of  conditions  that  farming  and 
farm  hfe  require  that  country  life  and  country 
occupations  could  become  more  attractive,  more 
co-operative  and  more  successful  than  even  city 
life  and  city  occupations  could  be.  There  is  no 
other  single  organized  effort  except  the  public 
school  that  can  assume  these  proportions,  and  for 
that  reason  it  is  selected  as  the  place  where  expan- 
sion should  be  made  and  where  improvement 
should  be  realized  to  its  fullest  extent.  Even  if 
this  plan  requires  that  the  school-houses  should 
be  three  times  as  capacious  as  they  are  to-day,  the 
investment  demanded  is  very  moderate  when  it  is 
recognized  that  this  enlarged  organization  gives 
opportunity  for  every  kind  of  activity  that  a  com- 


36  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

munity  needs,  and  at  the  same  time  unites  all  the 
people  to  the  work  of  the  public  school  so  that 
education  of  the  pupils  is  not  alone  the  care  of  the 
teacher,  but  also  of  every  individual  that  can  con- 
tribute of  knowledge  and  experience  to  the  body 
of  information  that  all  should  learn. 

The  Sanitation. — This  expansion  of  the  service 
of  the  country  school-house,  this  enlargement  of 
its  scope  and  of  its  advantages  gives  also  abundant 
opportunity  to  provide  scientifically  for  ventila- 
tion, regulated  heating,  pure-water  supply,  per- 
fect lighting  of  the  rooms  by  suitable  windows 
properly  located,  correct  sanitation  as  to  sewerage 
and  cleanliness — in  fact,  all  the  things  that  are 
helpful  to  the  homes  as  well  as  to  the  school,  since 
the  introduction  of  these  modern  notions  of  science 
into  the  school  building  will  do  much  to  educate 
the  community  to  better  ways  of  protecting  life 
and  health  than  are  in  common  use.  In  no  way 
can  a  people  learn  science  so  well  as  by  demon- 
stration, and  when  these  truths  have  been  fully 
comprehended  better  standards  will  be  introduced 
into  the  homes  in  such  great  measure  tliat  tuber- 
culosis and  contagious  diseases  will  be  greatly  re- 
duced in  violence  and  even  in  possibility  to  exist. 

The  Shop. — Every  country  school  should  have 
reasonable  facilities  to  teach  the  occupations  of 
the  shop  and  of  the  home  to  a  limited  extent. 


THE  SCHOOL  HOUSE  AND  GROUNDS        37 

Where  this  is  properly  done  the  larger  boys  and 
girls  will  not  be  found  leaving  their  home  school 
to  enter  the  city  schools,  because  they  will  see  that 
such  instruction  gives  competence,  enlarges  op- 
portunities to  make  good  wages,  and  insures  a 
practical  training  that  is  invaluable.  Cooking, 
sewing,  and  other  activities  such  as  simple  tasks  in 
carpentry  and  other  practical  callings  are  never  to 
be  successfully  conducted  in  the  country  schools 
until  all  these  necessary  equipments  and  facilities 
have  been  obtained  and  teachers  are  encouraged 
to  enter  upon  such  instruction  as  a  regular  part  of 
the  course  of  study. 

Agriculture. — When  it  comes  to  the  practical 
instruction  in  farming  that  is  necessary  to  a  com- 
munity, it  must  be  realized  that  it  is  not  alone  the 
children  that  are  to  be  benefited  by  the  instruc- 
tion in  agriculture  and  related  sciences  that  the 
organized  work  of  the  school  undertakes  to  ac- 
complish. These  things  are  a  community  affair 
rather  than  a  pupil  affair  and  as  a  consequence 
large  school  grounds  for  demonstration  work  and 
for  instruction  are  an  absolute  necessity.  This 
conception  of  rural  education  assumes  that  there 
are  large  needs  to  be  met  in  all  these  directions,  and 
that  the  mothers  and  the  fathers,  the  young  peo- 
ple and  the  children,  are  all  to  be  instructed  in  the 
things  that  increase  prosperity,  insure  happiness. 


38  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

and  enlarge  possibility.  The  people  of  the  coun- 
try communities  have  great  things  to  do,  they  de- 
serve to  be  given  the  best  information  and  the  best 
help  that  this  progressive  age  affords,  and  they 
should  have  in  their  schools  and  on  their  dem- 
onstration farms  the  best-trained  and  the  best- 
quaHfied  persons  that  can  be  obtained.  When 
this  is  done  in  a  proper  way  the  returns  for  labor 
will  be  much  greater,  the  products  marketed  will 
be  more  perfect  and  more  valuable,  while  the  in- 
come from  farming  will  be  more  general  and  more 
certain.  There  is  no  other  occupation  that  re- 
quires a  man  or  a  woman  to  be  more  studious,  be- 
cause there  is  no  other  occupation  that  has  larger 
problems  to  solve.  There  is  no  other  calling  that 
requires  more  accurate  scholarship,  because  the 
work  of  successful  farming  employs  the  broadest 
and  the  largest  knowledge  of  many  sciences.  There 
is  no  other  work  that  can  give  larger  returr^s  or 
that  is  more  fundamental  to  civilization  than  that 
of  country  people,  because  they  are  notably  inde- 
pendent, thoroughly  prosperous,  and  absolutely 
competent,  provided  they  invest  largely  in  the 
things  that  train  their  minds,  develop  their  capa- 
bihties,  and  enlarge  their  opportunities. 


VII 

THE  ORGANIZATION   OF  A  COUNTRY 
COMMUNITY 

Union  of  Effort. — The  first  step  to  progress  and 
success  in  all  public  aflPairs  is  dependent  upon 
proper  organization  and  perfect  co-operation. 
There  must  be  union  of  effort  in  undertaking  any 
such  great  movement  as  public  education.  This 
organization  of  society  implies  more  than  sup- 
porting the  work  by  paying  taxes,  as  the  complete 
demands  ask  for  the  help  of  men  and  women  as 
well  as  for  the  help  of  their  money.  To  conduct 
such  a  great  campaign  as  progress  and  improve- 
ment will  demand  calls  for  a  very  thorough  or- 
ganization of  the  people,  so  that  all  the  activities 
that  should  be  maintained  and  developed  may 
have  persons  selected  to  direct  and  to  manage 
them.  This  plan  of  developing  public  opinion  and 
public  interest  so  as  to  get  public  action  is  the  same 
system  as  that  used  by  societies,  churches,  and 
other  permanent  undertakings  for  the  public  good. 

The  School  Board. — Since  it  is  proposed  to 
combine  all  these  intellectual,  social,  moral,  and 
industrial    activities   of   a    community   with    the 

39 


40  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

school,  through  holding  all  such  meetings  and  con- 
ferences at  the  school  building,  it  is  self-evident 
that  the  school  board  will  become  the  supervisory 
body  that  will  provide  the  rooms,  the  equipment, 
and  the  general  expenditures,  and  have  control 
and  administration  of  the  property,  whether  used 
for  one  or  another  purpose.  It  will  also  become 
the  business  of  the  school  board  to  recognize  the 
organizations  that  should  have  these  privileges, 
it  being  understood  that  only  such  organizations 
are  legitimate  as  are  acceptable  to  the  people  as  a 
whole,  all  the  meetings  proposed  being  open  to  all 
persons  of  the  community  who  may  wish  to  at- 
tend. With  this  idea  as  a  basis  for  work,  it  is 
now  proposed  to  set  out  some  of  the  organized 
activities  that  should  be  conducted  for  the  benefit 
of  the  people  of  a  good  American  community. 

The  Literary  Club. — This  organization  has  its 
place  in  every  school  district,  as  it  provides  a 
means  whereby  the  people  and  the  pupils  can  hold 
meetings  once  or  twice  a  month  in  which  the  ly- 
ceum  idea  is  dominant.  The  programmes  should 
consist  of  addresses,  essays,  papers  on  practical 
subjects,  debates  on  public  questions,  dramatic 
exercises,  personal  reports  on  conventions,  and 
recitations  and  declamations.  The  influence  of 
such  a  club  is  far-reaching,  as  it  trains  the  people 
for  competency  and  efficiency  in  pubHc  work.     In 


ORGANIZATION  OF  A  COUNTRY  COMMUNITY    41 

addition  to  that  it  gives  results  to  study,  read- 
ing, and  observation  that  have  a  large  educational 
effect  upon  the  community  as  a  whole.  This  plan 
gives  a  combination  of  the  people  without  regard 
to  age,  attainments,  interests,  or  occupation,  and 
at  the  same  time  inspires  investigation  and  culti- 
vates  sympathy. 

The  Science  Club. — There  is  particular  reason 
why  a  special  organization  should  be  formed  that 
will  have  in  view  the  progress  and  the  improve- 
ments of  the  times.  In  this  club,  agriculture, 
domestic  science,  electricity,  aviation,  experimen- 
tal endeavors,  and  other  live  topics  and  discus- 
sions could  be  considered.  Its  officers  and  mem- 
bers should  have  in  view  the  consideration  of 
everything  that  contributes  to  the  physical  health, 
the  personal  happiness,  or  the  sanitary  welfare 
of  the  community.  These  problems  studied  may 
involve  much  that  adds  to  the  money  value  of 
the  crops,  of  the  dairy,  of  the  poultry  yard,  and  of 
the  stock-raising,  so  that  what  may  be  known 
or  learned  by  the  more  progressive  and  the  more 
energetic  may  thus  become  the  knowledge  and  the 
information  of  others  with  less  initiative  and  less 
capability  as  investigators.  By  this  kind  of  work 
the  value  of  the  farms  of  the  community  will  be 
increased  by  better  application,  by  better  spirit, 
by  better  results,  and  by  better  social  conditions. 

\ 


42  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

The  knowing  how  to  improve  appearances,  how 
to  get  better  fruit,  how  to  care  for  trees  and  shrubs, 
and  how  to  investigate  many  other  important 
sources  of  information  and  service  goes  a  long 
way  toward  making  this  world  a  better  place  for 
mankind.  Such  meetings,  occurring  at  stated 
times  not  less  than  once  a  month,  would  be  of 
growing  interest  and  of  incalculable  benefit. 

The  Singing  Club. — There  are  always  enough 
young  people  and  others  that  like  music  to  main- 
tain a  club  whose  chief  purpose  will  be  the  cul- 
tivating of  the  community  in  the  art  of  song. 
The  possibilities  and  accomplishments  of  such  an 
organization  can  hardly  be  appreciated  by  com- 
munities where  such  efforts  have  not  been  tried. 
Even  small  bands,  orchestras,  and  other  musical 
societies  can  be  organized  in  many  localities,  giv- 
ing instrumental  and  vocal  music  combined,  to 
increase  the  culture  and  the  artistic  taste  of  the 
people.  There  is  always  some  one  who  has  leader- 
ship and  personal  gifts  that  can  be  found,  either 
in  the  community  or  near  at  hand,  who  is  able  to 
develop  such  an  organization  into  efficiency  and 
helpfulness.  These  things  are  not  as  far  away  as 
they  seem,  when  the  will  of  the  people  is  combined 
to  get  desirable  results. 

The  Women's  Club. — These  are  the  days  when 
the  women  of  a  community  are  taking  a  large  part 


ORGANIZATION  OF  A  COUNTRY  COMMUNITY    43 

in  public  affairs.  The  women  of  the  towns  and 
cities  have  found  such  organizations  very  profit- 
able and  very  pleasant,  and  there  is  no  single  good 
reason  why  the  women  of  a  country  community 
should  not  enjoy  equal  opportunities  and  privi- 
leges. In  the  days  of  the  telephone,  the  automo- 
bile, the  air-ship,  and  rural-mail  delivery,  there 
are  many  reasons  why  the  women  of  the  country 
should  seek  their  own  betterment  and  social  wel- 
fare by  securing  the  touch  of  club  study  and  club 
discussion  that  the  reorganized  and  enlarged  edu- 
cational plan  would  give.  By  such  a  system  of 
co-operation  country  life  would  be  more  agree- 
able to  women,  their  burdensome  duties  would  be 
much  lightened  by  social  relaxation,  while  their 
happiness  and  contentment  would  be  permanently 
secured. 

Other  Activities. — In  addition  to  these  things, 
so  essential  and  so  helpful  in  educational  ways, 
there  can  be  added  courses  of  lectures,  entertain- 
ments of  various  kinds,  community  concerts,  so- 
cial meetings,  poHtical  and  religious  meetings,  or 
any  other  conferences  that  the  people  of  the  com- 
munity could  agree  to  arrange  from  year  to  year 
or  from  time  to  time.  In  these  days  of  the  farm- 
ers' short  courses,  the  agricultural-school-extension 
lecturers,  and  of  commercial  enterprises  of  such 
variety,  there  is  no  lack  of  material  for  such  public 


44  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

meetings  and  conferences,  if  they  are  considered 
desirable,  with  small  expense  to  the  organizations 
maintained.  Then  there  could  be  school  exhibi- 
tions, school  concerts,  dramatic  entertainments, 
and  other  such  activities  as  the  more  rare  occasions 
may  produce,  not  forgetting  the  annual  commu- 
nity dinner,  the  school  picnics,  and  the  other 
pleasant  affairs  that  are  to  be  expected  as  a  mat- 
ter of  course. 

Competition. — These  interests  will  have  the  ef- 
.  feet  of  developing  friendly  competition  among 
the  pupils  of  the  school,  among  the  people  of 
the  community,  and  among  the  people  of  two  or 
more  communities,  all  of  which  would  increase  in- 
terest, insure  action,  and  compel  better  efforts  for 
the  future.  There  could  be  fairs  of  all  kinds  ar- 
ranged, prizes  for  superiority,  interpretations  of 
methods  and  causes  that  produced  the  best  re- 
sults, and  tests  of  skill  and  effort  as  to  work  and  as 
to  education.  This  co-operation  could  be  brought 
to  such  a  high  grade  of  effectiveness  that  success 
would  be  honored,  knowledge  would  be  valued, 
and  victory  esteemed.  It  would  mean  a  great  deal 
to  boys  and  girls  to  live  in  such  an  environment, 
to  have  the  experience  of  such  contact  with  their 
superiors,  and  to  acquire  so  much  of  the  practical 
and  of  the  real  as  a  part  of  every-day  study,  work, 
and  entertainment. 


VIII 
THE   PROGRAMME 

The  Necessity. — It  is  of  large  importance  in 
conducting  a  country  school  that  everything  have 
a  place  and  a  time,  so  that  all  concerned  may  be 
prepared  to  meet  the  requirements  that  must  be 
imposed.  A  thorough  understanding  is  a  notable 
essential,  because  then  system  and  order  prevail 
and  harmony  of  action  becomes  possible.  The 
programme  adopted  must  provide  as  much  for  the 
preparation  of  the  work  as  for  the  recitations  and 
other  exercises  that  are  conducted  by  the  teacher, 
as  the  time  of  preparation  is  of  equal  importance 
to  the  later  presentation.  So  far  as  the  pupils  are 
concerned,  it  can  be  of  more  importance,  since  it  is 
likely  to  determine  their  progress  and  difeVdlop- 
ment.  The  necessity  for  this  systematic  organiza- 
tion will  be  easily  recognized  when  it  is  realized 
that  the  success  that  is  being  sought  depends 
largely  upon  the  ultimate  definiteness  of  manage- 
ment that  the  teacher  provides. 

The  System. — The  properly  prepared  schedule 
of  work  is  not  a  confused  jumble  of  things  that 
must  be  arranged  without  regard   to  suitability 

45 


46  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

of  time  or  of  sequence,  as  such  a  plan  takes  into 
account  the  laws  of  mental  endurance  and  of 
mental  activity.  When  this  is  done  the  energies 
are  conserved,  the  right  capabilities  are  employed, 
and  the  largest  returns  are  received,  with  the  least 
expenditure  of  time  and  effort.  All  these  things 
must  be  considered  when  a  programme  is  being 
constructed,  since  its  very  orderhness  and  its  par- 
ticular system  make  the  several  duties  more  rea- 
sonable and  more  possible. 

The  Mind. — Experience  has  taught  that  the  hu- 
man mind  has  a  certain  order  of  development  from 
infancy  to  maturity,  and  that  this  order  must  be 
known  when  the  kind  of  work  that  individual  pu- 
pils can  do  is  decided.  A  proper  understanding 
and  application  of  the  know^ledge  thus  obtainable 
enables  the  teacher  to  conduct  the  work  wisely  in 
every  sense.  This  order  of  development  is  as  fol- 
lows: perception,  memory,  imagination,  judgment, 
and  reasoning;  perceiving  power  appearing  first 
in  child-life,  and  reasoning  power  appearing  last. 
By  perceiving  is  meant  the  capability  of  the  child  to 
learn  about  things  through  the  senses.  The  results 
of  this  mental  activity  are  called  perceptions.  By 
memory  is  meant  the  capability  of  the  child  to  re- 
tain the  perceptions  he  has  had  so  that  the  im- 
pressiofts  he  has  received  may  be  permanent 
and   usable.     Memory  is  of  many  kinds  and  is 


THE  PROGRAMME  47 

governed  by  the  variety  of  experiences  In  per- 
ception that  a  child  may  have.  By  Imagination 
is  meant  the  capablHty  of  the  child  to  restore  to 
his  mind  Impressions  of  objects,  things,  and  ex- 
periences that  he  may  have  had.  By  it  he  de- 
scribes people  that  he  has  met,  animals  he  has 
seen,  and  any  other  objects  he  has  once  perceived. 
It  is  this  power  that  enables  him  to  give  reality  to 
his  reading,  to  his  study  of  geography,  and  to  any 
other  work  that  deals  with  realities.  By  judgment 
is  meant  the  ability  of  the  child  to  construct  sen- 
tences and  express  opinions  about  any  things  he 
has  known.  To  do  this  he  must  have  a  realization 
of  general  ideas  as  separate  from  Individual  Ideas, 
so  that  the  name  horse,  or  plant,  or  stone  does 
not  mean  any  particular  horse,  or  plant,  or  stone. 
That  is,  his  many  perceptions  must  have  become 
general  notions  or  conceptions.  This  Is  equally 
true  with  all  words  that  are  found  in  the  sen- 
tences the  child  writes  or  speaks,  as  judgment  Is  a 
combination  of  these  general  notions,  at  least  two 
such  notions  being  necessary  to  the  formation  of  a 
statement.  To  Illustrate:  in  the  sentence  "Birds 
fly,"  there  are  two  conceptions  represented  by  the 
words  birds  and  fly,  but  the  union  of  these  into 
one  sentence  makes  up  a  judgment.  As  judgment 
involves  many  varieties  of  conceptions  and  stand- 
ards of  expression,  this  explanation  deals  only  with 


48  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

the  simplest  and  most  direct  forms.  By  reasoning 
is  meant  the  child's  ability  to  pass  from  a  combina- 
tion of  statements  or  conclusions  to  a  new  conclu- 
sion of  a  higher  grade  of  opinion,  thus  becoming 
capable  of  deahng  comprehensively  more  and  more 
with  abstract  notions  of  higher  and  higher  degrees 
of  difficulty.  Education  has  to  do  with  so  train- 
ing the  mental  faculties  that  the  thinking  powers 
of  the  pupils  become  more  and  more  serviceable  in 
developing  usable  and  effective  conclusions. 

The  Order. — This  known  order  of  mental  de- 
velopment gives  a  key  to  the  kind  of  teaching  that 
can  be  done.  The  very  youngest  school  children 
have  strong  perceptive  powers  and  some  little 
memory,  with  very  unreliable  imagination.  This 
accounts  for  some  of  their  assumed  marvellous  ex- 
periences, since  what  they  imagine  seems  to  them 
to  be  as  true  as  what  they  perceive.  Those  a 
little  older  have  equivalent  perception,  more  re- 
liable memory,  and  more  certain  imagination,  but 
very  uncertain  judgment  on  anything  they  have 
experienced  or  thought,  as  their  touch  with  things 
has  not  yet  trained  them  to  have  trustworthy 
opinions  or  definite  conclusions.  In  like  manner, 
those  who  are  nearly  mature  in  their  mental  de- 
velopment become  capable  of  judging  and  reason- 
ing, as  well  as  of  perceiving,  remembering,  or  im- 
agining.    The  efficiency  of  these  powers  depends 


THE  PROGRAMME  49 

upon  the  condition  of  energy.  Even  persons  of 
maturity,  when  they  have  their  energy  reduced 
by  fatigue  or  by  illness,  become  incapable  of  rea- 
soning, judging,  imagining,  and  even  remembering. 
This  is  so  decidedly  true  that  it  is  necessary  to  so 
carefully  plan  school  work  that  those  things  need- 
ing the  highest  forms  of  mental  activity  be  given 
a  place  on  the  programme  when  mental  energy  is 
at  its  best.  For  a  similar  reason  the  forenoon 
A  hours  are  more  effective  than  the  afternoon  hours, 
and  the  first  parts  of  the  forenoon  or  afternoon  ses- 
sions than  the  last  parts  of  the  same  sessions. 
This  knowledge  of  the  order  of  the  faculties  los- 
ing their  efficiency  as  mental  energy  declines 
gives  a  reason  for  the  method  of  instruction  that 
ought  to  be  used  as  well  as  the  method  of  study 
that  can  be  employed  in  undertaking  either  recita- 
tion or  preparation.  What  should  be  first  in  the 
day  and  what  should  be  last  in  the  day  becomes, 
therefore,  a  matter  of  sensible  judgment  on  the 
part  of  the  teacher. 

Applications. — A  few  applications  of  these  prin- 
ciples will  assist  the  teacher.  Arithmetic  in  the 
primary  classes  and  arithmetic  in  the  advanced 
classes  cannot  be  one  and  the  same  in  either 
subject  matter,  method  of  instruction,  or  method 
of  study.  Number  work  is  more  language  than 
mathematics.     It  is  for  this  reason  that  it  is  im- 


50  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

possible  to  teach  anything  but  the  most  concrete 
and  the  more  graphic  types  of  arithmetic  in  the 
lower  grades  and  also  why  many  branches  of  study 
have  no  place  in  the  kindergarten  or  the  primary 
age.  It  is  also  true  that  the  teaching  of  any  sys- 
tem of  number  or  of  any  kind  of  elementary  arith- 
metic in  the  lower  grades  can  never  relieve  the 
necessity  of  teaching  those  kinds  of  arithmetic  in 
the  advanced  grades  which  demand  judgment  and. 
reason  and  the  higher  processes  of  thinking.  Thel 
adaptation  of  the  work  being  done  for  the  pupil,' 
so  as  to  suit  his  age  and  development,  is  the  most 
important  thing  to  do  in  all  kinds  of  teaching.! 
This  fact  explains  why  algebra  is  adapted  to  tEe 
higher  development  of  the  mind,  being  more  gen- 
eral and  more  abstract  in  its  form  of.  represen- 
tation and  calculation  than  is  arithmetic  in  its 
simpler  types.  It  is  not  just  another  way  of  per- 
forming the  same  operations  commonly  assigned 
to  arithmetic,  since  it  was  invented  to  suit  the 
needs  of  higher  methods  of  thinking  and  reasoning. 
Adaptation. — It  is  necessary  to  do  the  teaching 
from  day  to  day,  even  to  the  same  class,  so  as  to 
adapt  the  work  to  the  mental  condition.  If  the 
mental  energy  is  at  a  high  grade,  the  plan  of  teach- 
ing may  properly  call  into  the  use  of  the  lesson  the 
higher  faculties,  but  if  the  contrary  condition  ex- 
ists the  modification  must  be  made  to  meet  the 


THE  PROGRAMME  51 

emergency  that  is  found.  Good  teaching  means 
admirable  adaptation,  ready  adjustment  to  the 
situation  that  exists,  and  the  employment  of  the 
full  capability  of  the  pupil  being  instructed.  It 
becomes  necessary  to  know  personally  the  pupils 
that  are  being  taught  to  be  able  to  measure  their 
general  and  special  capabilities,  and  thus  lead 
them  to  so  use  their  powers  that  they  may  grow 
in  efficiency  and  serviceableness. 

The  Time  Element. — Custom  has  determined 
that  six  hours  shall  constitute  the  average  school 
day.  In  these  six  hours  there  may  be  wisely 
placed  two  recess  periods  of  fifteen  minutes  each. 
Some  good  teachers  would  dispense  with  the  re- 
cesses as  waste  of  time,  and  as  contributing  to  dis- 
order, but  the  hygienists  and  the  medical  profes- 
sion uniformly  approve  of  these  brief  rest  and 
recreation  periods  as  beneficial  to  the  physical 
and  mental  condition  of  the  pupils.  Long  school 
hours  are  not  necessarily  able  to  give  decidedly 
larger  results,  because  there  is  a  limit  as  to  time  for 
profitable  and  effective  study  or  attention.  It  is 
probable  that  two  hours  in  the  morning  and  two 
hours  in  the  afternoon  are  enough  of  vigorous  ap- 
plication for  the  average  child,  and  that  the  time 
that  is  assigned  beyond  that  does  not  give  any 
appreciably  better  results.  When  long  hours  are 
required,  it  remains  for  the  teacher  to  spend  much 


52  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

of  the  time  over  four  hours  in  exercises  that  require 
Httle  mental  energy  and  less  application.  To  this 
end  the  programme  should  give  ^  chance  for  rest 
and  for  relief  as  well  as  for  study  and  for  recitation. 
The  Model  Programme. — There  is  no  necessity 
of  dividing  the  hours  of  the  school  day  into  as 
many  small  parts  as  there  are  distinct  kinds  of 
work  to  give  to  all  the  pupils  of  the  school.  In 
addition,  it  is  not  necessary  that  every  subject  be 
given  a  class  recitation  every  day.  In  fact,  where 
the  classes  are  many  for  the  number  of  pupils,  as 
most  country  schools  will  show,  it  would  be  better 
to  have  each  recitation  of  good  length,  even  if 
there  were  only  three  such  recitation  hours  a  week. 
Then  there  is  a  possibility  of  doing  much  individ- 
ual work,  all  the  time  eliminating  the  necessity  of 
having  a  recitation  of  a  special  character  each  day 
in  every  organized  class.  Schools  are  so  individual 
in  their  needs  that  a  programme  must  be  made  to 
suit  the  requirements  of  each  one.  There  must 
be  a  specific  time  to  study  and  a  specific  time  to 
recite,  in  the  regular  programme.  The  variations 
necessary  from  day  to  day  as  to  the  different  sec- 
tions can  be  made  as  the  best  interests  require, 
but  it  becomes  important  that  the  teacher  give 
actual  attention  to  each  section  at  the  time  stated 
on  the  programme,  in  so  far  as  the  necessities  of 
each  particularly  require  at  that  time. 


THE  PROGRAMME  53 

PROPOSED  GENERAL  PROGRAMME  OF 
RECITATION 

9.cx>-  9.10.  Opening  Exercises  varied  from  day  to  day  to 
suit  the  different  grades  of  pupils. 

Primary  Advanced 

9. 10-10.  JO.     Reading  and  Spelling.  Arithmetjc. 

10.30-10.45.     Recess.  Recess. 

10.45-11.30.     Numbers.  Language  and  Spelling. 

1 1. 30-12.00.     Penmanship   and  Penmanship     and 

Drawing.  Drawing. 

12.00-  1. 00.  Noon  intermission;  playground  work. 

1. 00-  1. 1 5.  Singing  and  other  exercises. 

1. 15-  2.15.  Language  and  Read-  Geography  and  Ris- 
ing, tory. 

2.15-  2.30.     Recess.  Recess. 

2.30-3.30.  General  Exercises  and  Reading  and  Litera- 
Drills.  ture. 

3.30-  4.00.  Hygiene  and  Health.  Physiology  and  Hy- 
giene. 

4.00  Dismissal. 

Alternation. — This  programme  provides  for  an 
alternation  of  classes,  since  primary  and  advanced 
grades  are  in  the  same  school.  The  system  of  al- 
ternation allows  the  work  to  be  so  arranged  that 
oral  lessons  and  written  lessons  may  be  given  on 
different  days,  thus  allowing  a  teacher  practically 
to  have  two  or  more  sections  of  the  school  doing 
some  kind  of  reciting  at  the  same  time.  In  addi- 
tion, this  plan  has  special  merit  in  that  it  gives  the 
teacher  a  systematic  plan  of  dealing  fairly  with 


54  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

all  the  pupils,  providing  that  each  one  gets  his  rea- 
sonable share  of  attention  and  supervision.  Direc- 
tion, guidance,  instruction,  and  assistance  are  al- 
ways necessary  and  there  is  no  other  plan  that  in 
a  superior  way  insures  economy  of  time,  ready 
means  to  maintain  discipline,  and  actual  recogni- 
tion of  the  progress  of  all  that  belong  to  the  school. 
The  Study  Programme. — In  providing  a  study 
programme  it  is  necessary  to  recognize  that  only 
certain  branches,  hke  arithmetic,  geography,  his- 
tory, and  physiology,  are  specially  benefited  by 
study  of  the  pupil  independent  of  the  teacher. 
Most  advanced  pupils  ought  to  do  a  certain 
amount  of  night  study.  What  this  should  be  de- 
pends somewhat  upon  the  independence  of  the 
pupils  as  students.  It  is  easier  as  a  rule  to  suc- 
ceed with  information  studies,  like  history,  ge- 
ography and  physiology,  rather  than  with  drill 
studies,  like  arithmetic  and  language,  and  hence 
the  assignment  should  determine  what  is  best  in 
the  individual  case.  In  the  primary  classes  the 
time  of  study  should  always  precede  the  time  of 
recitation,  yet  nearly  all  the  effective  work  ac- 
complished is  done  when  the  teacher  is  in  charge 
and  the  study  or  the  recitation  is  under  super- 
vision. Whatever  plan  is  employed  the  constant 
attention  of  the  teacher  is  required  to  secure 
efficiency  in  results. 


IX 

MANAGEMENT 

Aims. — Acceptable  school  management  has  cer- 
tain definite  characteristics  that  are  always  pres- 
ent in  some  degree.  The  prudent  teacher  observes 
these  things  and  makes  their  accomplishment 
his  aim.  He  realizes  that  a  prosperous  school 
must  be  well  managed,  and  that  its  efficiency 
depends  upon  what  he  can  procure  from  the  pu- 
pils by  indirection.  There  is  a  necessity  for  a 
reasonable  degree  of  quiet  in  all  respects  that  are 
not  a  part  of  the  school  work,  and  therefore  he 
endeavors  to  cultivate  habits  that  will  give  this 
result  without  his  personal  supervision.  There  is 
good  reason  for  implicit  submission  to  the  requests 
of  the  teacher,  as  some  one  must  decide  the  ques- 
tions that  arise  as  to  procedure  and  as  to  pro- 
gramme, and  consequently  he  adopts  policies  and 
plans  that  can  be  easily  understood  and  readily 
executed.  There  is  no  way  to  have  the  work 
satisfactorily  succeed  unless  all  movements  are 
orderly  and  comprehended,  and  hence  he  instructs 
the  pupils  in  a  system  of  tactics  that  make  orderli- 
ness a  custom  by  giving  every  one  a  place.  These 
aims  are  a  part  of  the  executive  work  making  the 

55 


56  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

teacher  as  much  subject  to  law  and  to  regulations 
as  any  of  the  pupils.  For  these  reasons  he  must 
be  particularly  observant  of  the  customs  and  hab- 
its that  have  been  adopted,  in  so  far  as  his  own 
obedience  and  faithfulness  are  concerned.  By  so 
doing  he  becomes  an  effective  example,  since  by 
his  action  he  sincerely  honors  the  school  customs. 

Obedience. — Every  individual  in  a  school  is 
subject  to  the  rules,  regulations,  and  plans  that  are 
adopted.  The  teacher  will  find  it  harder  for  him- 
self to  obey  these  laws  of  the  school  than  would  be 
supposed,  because  he  must  be  the  typical  repre- 
sentative of  obedience.  It  is  a  common  thing  to 
find  teachers  act  as  if  school  regulations  have  been 
adopted  for  the  pupils  alone,  assuming  that  teach- 
ers are  really  above  such  arbitrary  control;  yet 
the  successful  teacher  will  not  ask  for  any  such 
preference  or  consideration.  He  is  not  tardy,  he 
is  not  noisy,  he  is  not  lacking  in  preparation  of 
his  lessons,  he  is  not  angr}^,  he  is  not  deceitful — be- 
cause he  desires  his  pupils,  to  be  free  from  these 
bad  tendencies  in  conduct  and  because  he  recog- 
nizes that  he  must  be  a  living  exemplar  of  the  vir- 
tues and  the  conduct  that  he  aims  to  have  his 
pupils  possess  if  he  comprehends  the  value  and 
the  importance  of  obedience. 

Types. — The  teacher's  conduct  goes  farther  in 
producing  effects  than  would  at  first  be  realized. 


MANAGEMENT  57 

The  teacher  who  would  have  a  quiet  school  must 
talk  in  such  a  moderate  tone,  must  move  about 
the  room  in  such  an  unobtrusive  manner,  must  so 
lead  in  the  work  that  orderlmess  and  quiet  are 
sympathetically  obtained  and  not  secured  b}^  com- 
mand or  by  formal  instruction.  The  teacher's 
manner  has  a  contagious  effect,  if  the  person- 
ality and  acceptability  are  such  as  they  should 
be.  The  teacher's  spirit  has  a  marvellous  influ- 
jence  in  dominating  the  spirit  of  the  school,  be- 
cause maturity,  superiority,  and  good-nature  are 
degrees  of  effectiveness  that  cannot  be  rejected  or 
declined  by  impressionable  persons  like  pupils. 
In  attempting  to  improve  conditions  of  any  kind 
that  are  found  in  a  school,  the  teacher  must  estab- 
lish the  types  that  are  essential  to  be  developed  and 
then  exemplify  these  in  every-day  conduct. 

The  Expected. — School  management  of  a  cred- 
itable kind  is  assumed  by  the  people  and  the 
pupils  as  a  proper  part  of  a  teacher's  work.  It 
signifies  that  the  teacher  anticipates  the  difficul- 
ties that  will  occur  and  that  he  prevents  the  nor- 
mal actions  that  would  follow  these  results  by  the 
removal  of  the  causes  and  by  substituting  other 
activities  that  produce  the  kind  of  results  that  a 
good  school  needs.  It  is  thus  that  probabilities 
are  recognized  and  are  changed  into  possibilities 
that  conform   to  the  needs  of  the  school  work. 


58  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

The  characteristics  of  good  school  management 
are  made  a  reahty  by  knowing  what  are  desirable 
and  executively  bringing  them  to  pass.  It  is  thus 
that  certain  phenomena  are  expected  and  sought 
as  showing  a  reasonable  effective  normal  condi- 
tion. Some  of  the  things  that  must  be  realized 
are  able  to  be  stated  in  the  following  series  of  facts, 
that  are  evidence  of  good  executive  control: 

1.  Good  management  is  unobtrusive  and  capa- 
ble in  its  forms  and  actions,  not  drawing  the  inter- 
est or  the  attention  of  the  pupils  away  from  the 
planned  work  by  fixing  them  on  the  mutable  con- 
ditions that  arise  and  that  disciphne  exacts. 

2.  Good  management  is  of  a  nature  that  it  does 
not  occupy  a  large  place  in  the  gossip  or  the  dis- 
cussion of  the  people  of  a  community,  as  its  spirit 
and  its  endeavors  keep  prominent  the  real  things 
that  the  school  represents  and  suppress  the  activi- 
ties that  create  discord  and  controversy. 

3.  Good  management  does  not  permit  the  em- 
phasis to  be  placed  upon  the  authority  and  the 
legal  province  of  the  teacher,  thereby  constantly 
advertising  him  as  a  physical  and  personal  power 
that  must  be  reckoned  with,  if  violations  of  rules 
or  regulations  occur. 

4.  Good  management  does  not  exhibit  itself  by 
methods  that  impress  the  pupils  consciously  that 
they  are  being  directed,  controlled,  and  restricted 


MANAGEMENT  59 

by  the  will  of  the  teacher,  rather  than  that  they 
are  being  influenced  and  led  by  the  kindness  and 
the  helpfulness  of  the  teacher. 

5.  Good  management  never  absorbs  the  thought, 
the  time,  or  the  strength  of  the  teacher  in  main- 
taining a  reasonable  discipline,  because  it  so  uses 
the  capabilities  of  the  pupils  in  the  activities  of  the 
school  that  such  considerations  are  unnecessary. 

The  Function  of  Skill. — The  marks  of  genuine 
skill  are  always  accompaniments  of  good  control 
and  good  administration.  The  function  of  skill  is 
worthy  of  being  comprehended  since  it  has  much 
to  do  with  improvement  and  more  to  do  with 
success.  The  acquiring  of  skill  is  the  dominant 
necessity  of  all  who  essay  to  teach,  and  toward  its 
development  and  its  efficiency  every  effort  should 
be  directed.  Skill  is  shown  in  the  school:  (i)  by 
the  work  being  so  conducted  that  the  energy 
and  the  self-activity  of  the  pupils  is  absorbed  by 
proper  and  legitimate  lines  of  endeavor;  (2)  by  the 
methods  of  instruction  being  made  so  interesting 
and  so  attractive  that  the  pupils'  attention  is  so 
fully  occupied  that  no  opportunity  remains  for 
other  kinds  of  interest;  (3)  by  the  work  being  so 
varied  that  systematic  relief  is  given  to  the  com- 
mon monotony  and  tendency  of  school  employ- 
ments, thus  relieving  fatigue  and  exhaustion  by 
change  of  occupation  at  the  proper  time;    (4)  by 


60  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

the  teaching  being  made  so  entertaining  and  so 
pleasing  that  the  mental  faculties  are  constantly 
kept  on  the  alert  by  the  novelties  and  plans  em- 
ployed; (5)  by  the  lessons  being  so  conducted  that 
there  yet  remains  for  further  study  and  investiga- 
tion on  the  part  of  the  pupils  much  information 
that  they  can  readily  ascertain  for  themselves,  and 
that  they  will  desire  to  find  out  without  any  assist- 
ance; (6)  by  providing  a  condition  of  mind  and  of 
heart  in  the  whole  school  as  an  organization  such 
that  sympathy  and  co-operation  become  large  fac- 
tors, inspiring  all  to  their  best  efforts  by  the  cor- 
dial relationships  that  exist. 

The  Centre  of  Interest. — Every  school  and  every 
community  has  some  dominant  intellectual  inter- 
est, some  want  that  remains  to  be  satisfied,  some 
ideal  that  must  be  realized.  To  ascertain  this 
central  interest  is  a  first  consideration,  because 
through  the  proper  employment  of  this  disposition 
toward  self-activity  the  school  becomes  an  agent 
to  contribute  to  a  realization  that  can  be  positively 
secured.  The  arousing  of  the  intellectual  powers 
of  a  pupil  can  easily  be  done  whenever  the  teacher 
has  discovered  the  pupil's  centre  of  interest  and 
has  used  this  to  create  a  desire  for  much  differ- 
ent and  more  complex  things.  There  is  a  proper 
trend  that  must  be  found  and  its  aim  utilized  in 
order  to  enable  both  pupils  and  people  fully  to 


MANAGEMENT  61 

appreciate  the  work  that  is  attempted  to  be  done 
by  the  teacher  of  the  school.  It  is  such  organized 
effort  as  this  that  unites  mental  activity  and  moral 
purpose  so  that  plans  are  carried  out  and  inten- 
tions realized.  The  spirit  of  the  pupils  is  a  vital 
force  that  gives  the  internal  impulse  and  expands 
opportunities  into  realizations  of  the  greatest  ser- 
viceableness.  That  teacher  who  works  out  the 
problem  of  control  by  indirect  means  has  deter- 
mined completely  the  types  of  conduct  and  the 
directions  of  motive  that  determine  educational 
results. 


X 

SCHOOL  GOVERNMENT 

Individuality. — Every  school,  as  well  as  every 
teacher,  has  individuahty  that  must  be  taken  into 
consideration  when  determining  the  plans  and  the 
means  of  governing  the  pupils  that  constitute  the 
school.  What  is  the  most  appropriate,  the  most 
sensible,  or  the  most  effective  depends  entirely 
upon  the  characteristics  that  are  found  and  the 
necessities  that  may  arise.  Government  is  al- 
ways a  problem  of  the  present,  not  one  of  the  past 
or  of  the  future.  Whether  there  should  be  any 
such  thing  in  reality  depends  upon  necessity  and 
emergency.  Common-sense  is  a  very  important 
factor,  and  its  application  is  the  most  certain  means 
of  reaching  a  satisfactory  success.  To  undertake 
to  substitute  rules,  regulations,  and  mechanical 
agencies  for  common-sense  and  for  reasonable  dis- 
cretion is  a  mistaken  endeavor,  because  there  can 
be  no  uniformity  in  method,  no  general  type  of 
punishment  for  mistakes,  and  no  similar  cases  of 
offence  to  happen.  The  teacher  is  always  supe- 
rior personally  to  any  code  of  rules  and  should  not 
bind  his  actions,  conclusions,  or  decisions  by  at- 

62 


SCHOOL  GOVERNMENT  63 

tempting  to  anticipate  what  may  happen  and  why- 
such  conduct  happens  and  what  should  be  done 
to  remedy  the  difficulties  when  they  do  arise. 

Perfection. — Conduct  cannot  be  standardized 
and  thus  determined  as  to  perfection  so  far  as 
individuals  are  concerned.  Children  have  their 
peculiarities,  their  incapabilities,  and  their  short- 
comings largely  because  they  are  incomplete,  im- 
perfect, and  inexperienced,  and  they  should  be 
sympathetically  and  judiciously  treated  by  their 
superiors.  Perfection  of  conduct  as  to  obedience, 
as  to  faithfulness,  as  to  integrity,  and  as  to  sincerity 
is  not  to  be  expected  of  them,  because  they  are 
under  training  and  should  have  their  ignorance 
removed,  their  lack  of  motive  assisted,  and  their 
impulse  to  better  things  enlarged  before  they 
should  be  treated  as  offenders  against  the  law  or 
as  deserving  of  physical  punishment.  The  failure 
of  children  of  public-school  age  to  approximate 
in  formal  conduct  to  that  assumed  as  right  for  a 
mature  person  should  not  discourage  the  teacher. 
Improvement  in  knowledge  of  the  right,  as  well  as 
in  development  of  the  strength  to  do  right,  is  a 
constant  and  progressive  influence  on  character. 
Justice  is  never  the  basis  of  adjustment  of  individ- 
ual cases,  as  the  discipline  of  imperfect  and  unde- 
veloped human  beings  requires  that  training,  in- 
struction, and  guidance  should  be  the  foundation 


64  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

of  all  improvement,  while  mercy  and  kindness 
should  temper  all  efforts  to  seek  the  elimination  of 
personal  faults  in  either  conduct  or  character. 

Vigilance. — Ideal  conditions  in  school  govern- 
ment are  unattainable,  because  the  immature 
personalities  need  help  and  guidance.  They  are  al- 
ways meeting  new  problems  in  conduct,  new  situ- 
ations in  experience,  and  new  demands  for  addi- 
tional information  as  to  right  and  wrong.  Eternal 
vigilance  can  never  be  dropped  by  the  school  ad- 
ministrator, as  there  are  always  new  causes  for 
disorder,  original  opportunities  to  investigate  the 
undesirable,  and  additional  chances  to  test  judg- 
ment and  motive.  Failure  to  reach  expectations 
is  common  experience,  evidence  of  disorganization 
and  of  decline  of  authority  is  a  frequent  occurrence, 
while  unintentional  and  accidental  transactions 
seem  to  possess  characteristics  that  are  intentional 
and  carefully  planned.  The  teacher  must  never 
depend  on  the  interpretation  of  a  mature  mind  as 
the  right  explanation  for  such  phenomena  of  un- 
desirable and  unfortunate  conduct  as  constantly 
will  appear  in  children's  lives.  .The  probabilities 
are  that  the  motives  may  be  much  better  than 
inferred  and  that  the  intention  to  conflict  with  the 
authority  and  wishes  of  the  teacher  did  not  exist. 
The  task  of  disciplining  a  school  is  a  constant  yet 
gradual  process  of  personal  influence.     It  is  by 


SCHOOL  GOVERNMENT  65 

slow,  quiet,  unobtrusive  stages  that  progress  and 
improvement  occur.  After  all  other  things  have 
been  tried,  it  will  be  found  that  the  personal  in- 
fluence and  popular  control  of  the  teacher  are 
the  qualities  that  are  of  most  permanent  value. 

Complexity. — School  government  is  not  a  sim- 
ple matter,  as  its  dealings  are  with  many  kinds  of 
personality,  at  many  various  ages,  about  many 
types  of  conduct  and  transactions.  It  is  not  pos- 
sible to  reduce  the  things  that  are  likely  to  occur 
to  distinct  formulae  that  will  serve  as  keys  to  un- 
lock the  problems  as  they  arise.  It  cannot  be 
reduced  to  a  system  that  will  have  definite  plans 
to  which  different  methods  can  be  applied.  It 
properly  belongs  to  a  very  complex  institution 
that  is  as  variable  as  the  different  pupils  involved, 
and  that  calls  for  as  much  consideration  and  dif- 
ferentiation as  all  these  individual  characteristics 
could  make  combinations.  It  becomes,  therefore, 
impossible  to  know  just  what  will  be  the  next 
thing  to  occur  or  to  conclude  what  would  be  the 
best  normal  solution  of  the  difficulties  involved. 

The  Problem  Stated. — The  management  of 
children  in  a  mass  depends  in  the  main  upon  cer- 
tain characteristic  phases  of  relationship  that  are 
found  to  appeal  to  the  individual  in  uniform  ways. 
These  instrumentalities  are  effective  in  different 
degrees  upon  different  individuals,  but  after  all 


66  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

they  can  be  relied  upon  to  produce  certain  posi- 
tive effects  that  are  easily  recognized.  The  qual- 
ity of  these  instrumentalities  depends  upon  the 
efficiency  in  developing  self-control  that  they 
produce,  while  their  results  are  due  to  their  accept- 
ance by  the  customs  of  society,  to  their  adapta- 
bility to  the  spirit  of  the  teacher,  and  to  their 
satisfying  the  attitude  of  the  pupils  in  the  service 
of  a  single  school  conducted  by  a  single  teacher. 
These  elements  of  government  depend  upon  the 
grade  of  personal  esteem  possessed  by  the  pupils, 
upon  the  individual  standards  of  character  train- 
ing they  have  reached,  and  upon  the  responsibiUty 
for  success  that  they  entertain  as  their  part  in  the 
work  the  school  is  organized  to  do. 

The  Factors  Outlined. — Among  all  the  influ- 
ences that  effect  school  government  the  following 
are  the  more  prominent:  (i)  the  moral  factor, 
(2)  the  intellectual  factor,  (3)  the  authority  fac- 
tor, and  (4)  the  force  factor. 

(i)  The  moral  factor  reaches  the  feehngs  of 
the  pupils  through  such  characteristics  as  are  de- 
veloped through  personal  companionship,  involv- 
ing the  spirit  of  the  pupil  toward  the  teacher  and 
toward  the  school,  seeking  regularly  and  contin- 
ually the  happiness  and  welfare  of  all.  Here  is 
found  the  personal  popularity  of  the  teacher  with 
the  pupils,  including  the  love,  respect,  and  esteem 


SCHOOL  GOVERNMENT  67 

that  naturally  exist  and  such  general  co-opera- 
tion, helpfulness,  and  affection  as  contribute  freely 
to  the  advancement  of  all  interests  that  the  school's 
endeavor  represents.  It  is  not  possible  to  enlarge 
too  much  upon  the  moral  factor  in  seeking  to  im- 
prove the  spirit  and  the  conduct  of  the  pupils  that 
compose  the  membership  of  a  school. 

(2)  The  intellectual  factor  is  also  a  personal  fac- 
tor to  a  large  extent,  though  of  minor  quality  as 
compared  to  the  moral  factor.  It  is  more  on  the 
official  side  than  the  first,  as  it  only  exists  because 
of  the  relationship  provided  by  the  organization 
of  the  school.  There  is  less  companionship,  be- 
cause the  teacher  is  recognized  as  superior  in 
knowledge,  experience,  and  v^^isdom.  In  such  a 
situation  excellent  scholarship  is  influential,  actual 
acquirements  are  effective,  and  notable  wisdom 
and  inteUigence  secure  official  respect,  recognition, 
and  confidence. 

(3)  The  authority  factor  may  or  may  not  be 
necessary.  It  is  a  complementary  factor  and  be- 
comes eminently  desirable  when  the  moral  factor 
and  the  intellectual  factor  combined  are  not  strong 
enough  to  conduct  harmoniously  a  school's  activ- 
ities. Since  there  are  teachers  whose  qualities  in 
these  two  pre-eminent  phases  are  not  all-sufficient, 
it  becomes  necessary  to  hold  the  attention,  to  en- 
force study,  and  to  control  conduct  by  the  use  of 


68  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

the  authority  conferred  upon  the  teacher  by  law. 
Pupils  under  these  circumstances  do  not  have  the 
most  helpful  atmosphere,  because  they  obey,  main- 
tain equihbrium,  and  try  to  accomphsh  their  work 
rather  than  come  into  conflict  with  the  teacher 
who  is  superior  in  physical  strength  and  is  capable 
by  nature  of  enforcing  the  requirements  that  have 
been  stated.  The  mere  fact  that  freedom  is  re- 
strained, that  decorum  is  artificial,  that  there  is  a 
choice  between  two  assumed  evils  rather  than  two 
assumed  goods  makes  this  kind  of  government  of 
lower  grade  than  that  obtained  by  rehance  upon 
the  feehngs  and  the  intellect.  It  is  best  to  recog- 
nize that  the  persuasive  tone  is  to  be  preferred  to 
the  demanding  tone  if  it  can  accomplish  the  pur- 
pose and  that  it  is  harmful  to  constantly  keep  in- 
feriors conscious  of  their  inferiority  if  real  progress 
in  self-government  is  to  be  sought.  Threats,  im- 
precations, accusations,  boastful  attitudes,  and  as- 
sumptions of  superiority  are  always  to  be  regarded 
as  elements  of  inefficiency  and  as  confessions  of 
weakness  in  a  teacher  that  even  the  pupils  will 
easily  recognize. 

(4)  The  force  factor  is  still  more  rarely  essential 
than  the  authority  factor,  as  it  belongs  exclusively 
to  those  who  make  school  work  a  kind  of  warfare 
rather  than  a  kind  of  companionship.  It  is  the 
final  supplemental  eflFort  that  can  be  employed, 


SCHOOL  GOVERNMENT  69 

because  If  it  does  not  secure  the  control  necessary 
the  teacher  must  retire  from  the  school  because  of 
incapability  in  government.  This  factor  appears 
in  numerous  forms  and  in  many  means  and  meth- 
ods. Its  strongest  type  is  that  of  corporal  punish- 
ment, but  there  are  other  devices,  such  as  keep- 
ing pupils  after  school  hours,  depriving  pupils  of 
recesses  and  of  other  privileges,  that  are  commonly 
employed  to  enforce  control.  These  are  just  as 
destructive  of  the  altruistic  feelings  which  should 
exist  between  the  pupils  and  the  teacher,  and  are 
at  times  even  more  objectionable.  The  more  com- 
mon forms  may  be  classified  under  reproof,  deten- 
tion, restriction,  coercion,  suspension,  and  expul- 
sion. These  represent  many  forms  and  have  many 
degrees  of  exaction  and  bitterness.  So  far  as  their 
use  is  concerned,  when  such  inflictions  become 
necessary,  the  mildest  type  is  always  the  best  and 
the  surest  to  select.  All  of  them  are  advertise- 
ments of  the  admitted  incompetency  of  the  teacher 
to  reach  his  aims  by  more  successful  and  more  hu- 
mane means.  Young  teachers  of  limited  experi- 
ence may  be  excused  for  weakness  in  the  higher 
Unes  of  humane  government,  since  their  later 
growth  and  improvement  will  magnify  the  powers 
that  are  the  most  effective.  The  wise  and  pro- 
gressive teacher  soon  identifies  the  permanent  and 
the  constructive  with   the  moral   and   the  intel- 


70  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

lectual  factors  and  endeavors  to  have  himself  ap- 
proved by  investigating  the  ways  in  which  strength 
and  abiHty  may  be  turned  into  the  most  effective 
directions  of  human  effort. 


XI 

TACTICS 

Purpose. — Every  school  needs  a  simple  system 
of  tactics  that  is  well  understood  by  all  and  that 
relieves  the  necessity  of  making  every  transaction 
a  special  order.  The  chief  purpose  of  all  tactics 
is  to  save  the  time  of  every  one  identified  with  the 
school.  A  country  school  should  be  so  well  or- 
ganized and  so  successfully  managed  that  all  the 
time  allotted  can  be  given  to  the  educational  work. 
When  the  tactics  are  well  understood  and  have 
been  carefully  selected,  they  are  self-explanatory, 
because  they  are  founded  on  reason,  they  become 
a  benefit  ahke  to  order,  to  study,  and  to  recitation. 
Tactics  are  not  substitutes  for  the  work  that  teach- 
ers ought  to  do;  they  are  plans  of  management  that 
accomplish  what  the  teachers  ought  not  to  do.  It 
is  necessary  to  suggest  that  tactics  have  their 
limitation  and  should  not  be  invented  for  all  sorts 
of  conditions.  A  teacher  may  be  too  much  of  a 
tactician  and  spend  more  time  and  thought  and 
effort  upon  the  developing  of  the  tactics  he  deems 
desirable  than  would  be  required  to  conduct  the 
things  sought  without  tactics.     When  it  is  neces- 

71 


72  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

sary  to  do  similar  things  frequently  and  to  do  them 
in  similar  ways,  then  it  is  that  tactics  have  a  proper 
place. 

The  Use. — Mechanical  movements  that  are  ex- 
ecuted by  signals  or  by  word  of  command  must 
be  justified  on  the  basis  of  helpfulness,  usefulness, 
and  comprehensiveness.  Even  when  it  is  well  to 
have  these  movements  depend  upon  a  system  of 
tactics,  it  must  be  recognized  that  simpHcity  rather 
than  complexity  should  prevail  and  that  the  less 
such  special  organization  or  arbitrary  management 
is  required,  the  better  it  will  be  for  the  governing 
authority  as  well  as  for  the  pupils  being  directed. 
The  maintaining  of  an  arbitrary  system  of  signals 
is  very  exhaustive  upon  the  energy  of  a  teacher, 
particularly  if  constant  explanation  as  to  their 
meaning  or  purpose  is  necessary.  Common-sense 
should  always  prevail.  There  is  no  substitute  for 
good  judgment,  for  on  it  depends,  after  all,  the 
eradication  of  abuses,  the  correction  of  evils,  and 
the  reform  of  bad  conduct.  Whenever  any  part  of 
a  system  of  tactics  dispenses  with  judgment,  with 
fair  dealing,  or  with  the  freedom  and  rights  of 
either  teacher  or  pupils,  the  time  has  come  for  the 
teacher  to  adopt  a  new  plan  of  management. 

Opening  and  Closing  School. — The  special  kind 
of  ceremonials  which  can  best  be  used  at  the  open- 
ing and  at  the  closing  of  the  daily  session  of  a 


TACTICS  73 

school  depends  upon  the  arrangement  of  the  room, 
the  location  of  the  door  through  which  the  pupils 
pass,  the  form  of  the  hall  that  connects  the  school- 
room with  the  door,  and  the  permitted  rights 
and  privileges  of  the  playgrounds  of  the  school. 
The  system  that  may  be  suitable  for  one  place  is 
rarely  serviceable  for  other  places,  unless  the  gen- 
eral conditions  are  practically  identical.  If  play- 
ground privileges  are  general,  and  a  large  number 
of  pupils  take  advantage  of  them,  remaining  at 
play  as  long  as  circumstances  permit,  then  the 
tactics  to  be  applied  need  to  be  more  formal  than 
they  would  need  to  be  where  the  number  of  pupils 
is  small  and  the  need  for  formal  procedure  is  un- 
necessary. When  many  pupils  are  to  be  managed, 
military  precision  should  be  employed  and  a  reg- 
ular order  of  procedure  should  be  adopted.  In 
a  similar  way,  dismissal  from  the  room  may  be 
necessarily  formal,  and  the  precision  required  may 
be  very  exact,  every  pupil  having  his  place  and  ev- 
ery one's  turn  being  recognized.  Whatever  may  be 
the  plan,  the  orderly  coming  and  going  of  masses 
of  pupils  must  receive  the  most  careful  super- 
vision in  order  that  accidents  may  be  prevented, 
the  rights  of  the  weaker  and  the  smaller  preserved, 
and  the  authority  of  the  teacher  recognized. 

Overdiscipline. — Frequently  the  conditions  are 
so  unusual,  the  problems  to  be  solved  are  so  dif- 


74  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

ficult,  and  the  tactics  to  be  enforced  so  dominant 
that  a  type  of  overdiscipUne  becomes  a  necessity. 
This  appears  prominently  in  inclement  weather, 
in  cases  of  panic  or  alarm,  in  situations  where  the 
disposition  of  the  pupils  is  inimical  to  the  teacher's 
authority,  and  at  any  other  times  when  the  unex- 
pected or  the  unusual  appears.  The  teacher  is 
sometimes  compelled  to  be  more  on  duty  and  more 
in  control  during  recess  and  noon  periods  than  dur- 
ing the  session,  because  the  problems  involved  are 
more  urgent  and  the  difficulties  that  arise  need 
immediate  adjustment.  In  dealing  with  these 
matters  order  and  conduct  of  a  reasonable  grade 
are  all  that  should  be  expected.  There  is  such  a 
thing  as  attempting  to  compel  order  and  conduct 
of  remarkable  kinds  that  are  beautiful  to  look 
upon,  but  suppressive  in  result  and  training.  Such 
a  system  does  not  train  in  self-control  or  self- 
direction,  and  prevents  the  pupils  from  using  their 
initiative  and  their  capability  in  ways  that  contrib- 
ute to  their  proper  development  or  their  personal 
enjoj^ment  and  comfort.  Suppression  is  wrong  in 
principle  and  in  training,  as  it  does  not  lead  to  that 
independence  or  that  self-adjustment  that  is  es- 
sential to  a  happy  and  productive  life. 

The  School-Room. — Unless  there  is  an  abso- 
lute necessity  for  signals  in  the  school-room  they 
should  not  be  used.     Order  and   quiet   may   be 


TACTICS  75 

obtained  by  posture  and  by  patiently  waiting. 
Calmly  standing  in  the  presence  of  an  audience 
is  usually  sufficient  to  secure  attention  in  as  short 
a  time  as  any  other  method  can  procure.  The 
ringing  of  a  bell,  the  rapping  on  a  desk,  or  the 
producing  of  any  peculiar  noise  to  secure  attention 
is  not  necessarily  as  helpful  as  silent  methods.  A 
request  is  stated  much  more  effectively  when  self- 
control  and  patience  are  manifested  by  the  ad- 
ministrator. In  a  similar  way  the  calling  and  the 
dismissing  of  classes,  the  sending  of  pupils  to  the 
blackboard,  or  the  returning  of  them  to  their 
regular  places  should  be  secured  with  as  little  dis- 
play and  tactical  management  as  possible.  In 
fact,  the  pupils  can  do  these  things  in  many  in- 
stances without  command,  if  there  is  a  clock  in  the 
room  and  the  programme  is  faithfully  obeyed. 
The  return  of  one  class  to  their  regular  sittings 
may  be  employed  as  a  signal  for  the  calling  of  the 
next  class  recitation.  If  the  teacher  should  omit 
the  recognition  of  the  fact  that  the  time  has  come 
for  the  closing  of  a  recitation,  the  members  of  the 
class  whose  recitation  is  due  could  stand  in  their 
places,  thus  calling  attention  to  the  fact  that  the 
time  had  come  for  a  change  in  the  work. 

Ingenuity  and  Novelty. — The  best  tactics  rec- 
ognize a  necessity  to  relieve  monotony  of  every 
kind.    Rigid  forms  of  discipline,  such  as  a  definite 


76  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

posture  at  the  desk,  an  exact  method  of  getting 
excused  from  the  room,  a  particular  form  of  study, 
or  other  regular  practices  of  the  school,  are  not 
endurable.  Ingenuity  should  be  used  to  prepare  a 
sensible  plan  to  meet  a  certain  condition  in  an 
individual  school.  To  illustrate:  a  large  school 
was  very  difficult  to  dismiss  in  the  evening  because 
of  the  arrangements  possible  for  clothing  and 
lunch-baskets.  It  occurred  to  the  teacher  to  pro- 
pound a  problem  in  addition  and  allow  the  first 
one  who  obtained  the  correct  answer  to  get  ready 
quietly  to  retire.  The  proper  answer  to  the  prob- 
lem was  written  on  the  blackboard  after  the  dicta- 
tion was  completed.  Pupils  who  did  not  get  this 
answer  the  first  time  made  an  additional  trial. 
The  scheme  proved  popular,  it  accomplished  the 
purpose,  and  it  was  successful  in  giving  an  excel- 
lent drill  in  accuracy  in  addition  as  well  as  secur- 
ing a  quiet  dismissal.  The  results  educationally 
were  much  more  effective  because  the  competition 
inspired  the  pupils  with  the  desire  to  add  large 
problems  with  positive  accuracy.  Thus  novelty 
and  originaHty  count  for  much  in  school  work. 
The  less  experience  a  teacher  has,  the  more  the 
reason  to  study  out  solutions  for  the  problems  of 
management  and  the  more  necessity  to  employ 
useful  methods  in  securing  a  helpful  discipline. 
To  this  end  the  becoming   acquainted  with   the 


TACTICS  77 

persons  and  the  names  of  the  pupils  the  beginning 
day  is  of  the  greatest  importance.  The  possession 
of  this  knowledge  and  the  ability  to  use  it  are  a 
great  advantage  in  obtaining  control  of  the  school. 
This  can  easily  be  done  by  the  teacher's  drawing 
of  a  floor  plan  of  the  school-room  and  as  the  pu- 
pils are  being  enrolled  by  writing  their  names  on 
the  proper  place  in  this  drawing.  By  placing  this 
floor  plan  on  the  desk  the  teacher  can  easily  as- 
certain any  name  that  is  temporarily  forgotten,  by 
identifying  the  location  of  the  pupil  with  the  name 
on  that  plan.  Such  simple  methods  as  these  are 
often  very  helpful. 


XII 

EXAMINATIONS 

Their  Place. — Formal,  definite,  written  and  oral 
examinations  have  their  place  in  the  work  of  a 
school  if  they  are  properly  given  and  are  not  ex- 
aggerated in  their  purpose.  They  have  a  legiti- 
mate province  that  cannot  be  ignored,  as  without 
them  there  is  a  lack  of  training  in  accuracy  of 
statement  and  of  care  in  knowing  things  fully  and 
exactly.  There  is  always  a  chance  for  the  over-use 
as  well  as  the  under-use  of  any  such  instrumentahty 
as  the  examination.  It  is  equally  true  of  any  other 
kind  of  method  employed  in  school  work.  For- 
mal rules,  regulations,  and  plans  often  continue  in 
force  beyond  their  usefulness  and  are  abused,  be- 
cause the  teacher  places  system  above  judgment 
and  theory  above  practice.  There  was  a  time 
when  examination  systems  were  regarded  with 
such  remarkable  esteem  that  their  abuses  received 
no  attention  because  they  were  considered  as  a 
necessity  of  the  system.  As  a  result  weary,  ex- 
haustive hours  were  required  of  both  teachers  and 
pupils  in  order  to  obtain  results  that  were  not 

commensurate  with  the  strain  and  the  torture  in- 

78 


EXAMINATIONS  79 

flicted.  This  was  caused  very  largely  by  the  great 
importance  and  the  definite  decisions  attributed 
to  the  system.  These  abuses  are  not  a  part  of 
examinations  when  their  object  is  normal  and  their 
use  is  reasonable. 

Their  Province. — The  iconoclast  has  attempted 
to  break  to  pieces  the  idol  of  the  school-master 
and  the  school  committee  by  demanding  the  abo- 
lition of  all  examining  systems,  with  the  hope  of 
substituting  in  their  place  the  estimates  and  the 
opinions  of  the  teacher  for  the  records  made  in  the 
formal  examination.  This  theory  of  educational 
management  has  been  so  largely  accepted  that 
progressive  teachers  hesitate  to  use  any  system  of 
examination  for  fear  of  the  criticism  that  may  be 
aroused.  As  a  consequence  of  these  looser  methods 
the  results  in  English  spelling,  in  English  composi- 
tion, and  in  accurate  knowledge  of  Hterature,  his- 
tory, and  mathematics  are  not  up  to  the  standard 
maintained  during  the  prevalence  of  the  examina- 
tion system.  There  seem  to  be  no  positive  equiva- 
lents in  to-day's  educational  system  for  the  strenu- 
ous drills,  the  classified  outlines,  and  the  specific 
definitions  that  were  obtained  in  the  old-time  spell- 
ing-schools, lyceums,  and  formal  tests  that  had 
such  prominence  a  generation  ago.  It  is  certainly 
proper  to  return  to  the  faith  and  the  practice  of 
the  fathers  where  results  are  more  effective.    There 


80  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

is,  then,  a  middle  ground  in  the  acceptance  of 
the  examination  as  a  good  instrument  to  secure 
thoroughness,  to  develop  power  of  discussion,  and 
to  attain  accuracy  of  statement  and  definiteness 
of  conclusions. 

Their  Nature. — The  nature  of  the  examinations 
that  should  be  given  depends  entirely  upon  the 
subject  examined,  as  there  must  be  special  adapta- 
bility to  the  needs  and  the  possibilities  of  every 
department  of  study.  Mathematics  has  different 
possibilities  in  this  regard  from  history,  reading, 
spelling,  or  geography,  because  it  is  a  much  more 
exact  and  hmited  subject  of  study  and  its  plans  of 
presentation  and  representation  are  much  more 
given  in  the  lessons  taught.  Language  methods 
and  plans  of  instruction  should  be  such  that  a  sort 
of  examining  system  is  continuously  in  employ- 
ment. No  manuscript  of  any  kind  can  be  pre- 
pared, no  oral  discussion  of  any  sort  can  be  given, 
and  no  recitation  can  be  conducted  that  is  not 
more  or  less  an  examination  in  English.  The 
teacher  must  take  cognizance  of  errors,  of  short- 
comings, of  lack  of  clearness,  and  of  deficiency  in 
view  all  the  time,  and  require  the  correction  of 
the  same  so  as  to  develop  a  better  usage.  When 
examinations  are  to  be  given  certain  principles 
should  be  obeyed,  as  the  questions  selected  must 
be  adapted  in  form  and  in  requirement  to  the  age 


EXAMINATIONS  81 

and  to  the  development  of  the  pupils  who  take  the 
test.  The  kind  of  query  that  is  suitable  for  the 
eighth-grade  pupil  is  not  proper  for  the  third- 
grade  pupil  even  if  the  topic  is  somewhat  similar. 
The  pupil's  qualifications  in  the  subject,  his  use 
of  language,  his  experience  in  answering  questions, 
should  all  be  given  due  attention  when  success  is 
regarded  as  an  important  element  to  be  sought. 

Their  Aim. — The  well-taught  and  well-trained 
pupils  should  always  succeed  in  any  proper  ex- 
amination. Otherwise  it  shows  a  lack  of  reason- 
ableness as  to  difficulties,  a  condition  that  is  a  dis- 
credit to  the  teacher  rather  than  to  the  pupils. 
School  work  should  be  planned  for  success  rather 
than  failure,  and  not  to  attain  such  a  satisfactory 
state  indicates  that  the  teacher  has  not  conducted 
affairs  as  was  rightly  expected.  The  aim  of  the 
teacher's  examination  of  a  class  is  to  test  the 
results  that  the  teacher  supposes  the  pupils  have 
attained,  in  order  to  ascertain  if  the  preparation 
has  been  complete.  If  not  found  to  be  so,  a  review 
is  essential  and  more  training  must  be  secured  be- 
fore the  work  can  be  satisfactory.  While  the  ex- 
amination commonly  brings  our  the  pupil's  weak- 
nesses, it  actually  exhibits  the  things  in  which  the 
teacher's  work  is  yet  to  be  perfected.  Study  and 
school  work  are  for  the  pupils'  good  rather  than 
their  harm,  to  strengthen  them  in  their  future  ap- 


82  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

plication  so  that  they  are  qualified  to  stand  the 
tests  that  the  world  will  later  require  of  them  in 
active  life.  When  the  examinations  are  oral,  then 
the  teaching  should  have  prepared  the  way  for 
them,  and  for  the  same  reason  written  examina- 
tions demand  a  careful  drill  in  that  particular  kind 
of  preparation. 

Their  Frequency. — There  is  naturally  much  va- 
riation in  opinion  as  to  the  frequency  of  examina- 
tions. This  is  caused  by  the  necessities  being  dif- 
ferent in  branches  of  study  and  also  in  schools  as 
organized.  Language  examinations  are  almost 
daily  exercises.  Good  work  in  this  line  even  ad- 
vises the  "drop"  examination  in  order  to  ascertain 
the  scholastic  status  at  any  time.  History  and 
geography  do  not  require  any  such  attention  as 
does  language,  as  pupils  may  forget  much  that 
they  have  learned  of  these  branches  and  not  be 
much  the  worse  for  it.  School  work  is  often  com- 
bined so  that  the  important  and  the  unimportant, 
the  material  and  the  immaterial,  are  confused. 
So  far  as  training  in  language  is  concerned,  the 
proper  usage  or  the  correct  style  must  be  secured 
in  every  way  possible.  In  most  subjects  a  monthly 
investigation  through  a  test  may  be  sufficient,  but 
there  are  always  some  subjects  which  need  atten- 
tion and  exaction  two  or  three  times  more  fre- 
quently. 


EXAMINATIONS  83 

Their  Purpose. — The  three  principal  objects  of 
having  the  examinations  are  as  follows: 

1.  To  test  the  complete  apprehension  of  the  pu- 
pils as  to  the  exact  details  of  particular  lessons, 
in  order  to  try  specifically  the  knowledge  of  the 
pupils  on  the  subject  matter  that  is  essential  and 
important  in  after  progress  and  development. 
This  class  of  examinations  needs  to  be  quite  fre- 
quent, as  they  are  an  attempt  to  bring  a  review  into 
the  minds  of  the  pupils  through  a  conscious  re- 
consideration of  what  is  decidedly  worth  remem- 
bering for  all  time.  This  conscious  reconsidera- 
tion of  valuable  knowledge  is  of  more  importance 
than  the  primary  vigorous  mastery  of  it. 

2.  To  test  the  pupils'  power  to  make  practi- 
cal application  of  the  knowledge  they  have  been 
taught.  This  kind  of  examination  is  a  sort  of 
original  investigation,  because  it  requires  the  pu- 
pils to  use  what  they  know  in  constructing  new 
combinations  of  their  knowledge.  This  method 
has  great  educational  value  in  that  it  leads  pupils 
to  turn  what  they  have  learned  into  practical  ends. 
It  is  also  a  similar  test  to  that  end  in  all  kinds  of 
business,  as  it  brings  out  the  ingenuity  of  the  in- 
dividual as  well  as  his  skill  in  thinking  out  applica- 
tions. To  get  the  full  benefits  that  are  rightly  to 
be  expected,  great  honesty  must  be  shown  by  the 
pupils  in  actually  presenting  their  own  individual 


84  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

work.  It  is  the  original  quality  that  here  must 
be  recognized  and  none  other  should  be  accepted 
as  complying  with  the  standard  of  excellence  pre- 
scribed. 

3.  To  test  the  qualifications  and  acquirements  of 
pupils  to  so  complete  a  subject  as  to  be  entitled  to 
advancement  to  a  higher  grade  of  study.  This 
kind  of  examination  is  usually  prepared  by  the 
superintendent  or  some  outside  person.  It  should 
be  a  general  examination,  presenting  moderate  dif- 
ficulties, and  should  be  of  such  a  character  that 
cramming  or  short-time  preparation  will  not  suf- 
fice. Such  an  examination  should  follow  a  general 
review  conducted  by  the  teacher  and  should  con- 
sist of  such  questions  and  topics  as  well-prepared 
pupils  ought  to  consider  reasonable  and  appropri- 
ate. The  pupil  who  is  ready  for  such  a  test  should 
not  be  able  to  criticise  either  the  form,  the  object, 
or  the  scope  of  the  questions  propounded,  because 
he  should  be  impressed  with  their  adaptation  to 
his  present  state  of  education. 

Patience. — The  need  for  great  patience  and  for 
great  deliberateness  in  conducting,  as  well  as  in 
taking,  examinations  must  be  recognized.  Exam- 
inations have  their  difficulties  for  the  teacher  as 
well  as  for  the  pupils.  They  may  be  either  wisely 
or  unwisely  organized  and  conducted;  they  may 
be  useful  or  useless;  they  may  be  helpful  or  help- 


EXAMINATIONS  85 

less — all  depending  upon  the  wisdom  employed 
by  those  authorized  to  prepare  questions,  to  read 
answers,  or  to  determine  grades.  The  history 
of  human  effort  shows  that  it  takes  a  great  deal 
of  wisdom  to  prudently  handle  such  an  agency 
in  educational  endeavor.  Patience  and  persever- 
ance have  here  their  true  place  of  service.  The 
examiner  and  the  examined  both  need  the  sym- 
pathy of  the  other,  as  either  is  at  a  disadvan- 
tage. The  practical  and  the  useful  should  be 
constantly  remembered  and  emphasized,  while 
sensible  action  and  reasonable  acceptance  are 
continually   essential. 


XIII 

STUDY 

Lessons. — The  proper  assignment  of  the  lessons 
that  are  to  be  prepared  by  study  is  an  important 
function  that  the  teacher  may  perform  in  so  care- 
less and  so  indifferent  a  manner  that  the  pupils 
are  not  given  a  fair  chance  to  make  a  good  pres- 
entation of  themselves  at  the  recitation  that  fol- 
lows. It  ought  to  be  recognized  that  good  recita- 
tions can  be  insured  by  good  preparation  and  in 
no  other  way.  The  mastery  of  the  use  of  text- 
books and  the  capabiHty  in  obtaining  a  compre- 
hension of  the  lessons  assigned  depend  largely 
upon  the  teacher's  prudence,  intelligence,  and  good 
sense.  It  is  essential  that  this  part  of  the  work 
be  so  conducted  as  to  make  the  pupil's  success  a 
positive  certainty.  Direction,  guidance,  and  sym- 
pathy are  essential  factors  in  a  successful  study 
hour.  Anybody  can  assign  pages  or  topics  or 
chapters  for  preparation,  but  it  takes  a  teacher  of 
the  best  quality  to  assign  the  right  quantity,  to 
point  out  the  real  difficulties  that  will  be  met,  and 
to  adapt  the  requirements  of  study  to  the  capa- 
bilities of  a  particular  class  of  pupils.     That  such 

86 


STUDY  87 

requirements  should  always  be  reasonable,  possi- 
ble, and  certain  of  accomplishment  is  the  proper 
basis  for  definite  results. 

Mistakes. — It  is  a  common  mistake  to  assume 
that  there  is  large  benefit  in  attempting  to  study 
whether  the  pupil  does  or  does  not  succeed  in  at- 
taining the  preparation  needed.  It  is  equally  an 
error  to  assume  that  pupils  can  be  expected  to  pre- 
pare effectively  a  lesson  just  because  it  is  credita- 
bly presented  by  a  text-book  and  the  subject  mat- 
ter has  been  definitely  assigned  by  the  teacher. 
Neither  is  it  true  that  text-books  are  easily  read, 
or  that  the  thought  they  convey  is  easily  compre- 
hended. Experience  proves  that  every  kind  of 
text-book,  every  new  science,  every  new  line  of  in- 
formation, every  new  thought,  in  order  to  be  com- 
prehended by  the  average  public-school  pupil, 
needs  interpretation,  explanation,  and  illustration, 
A  good  text-book  is  a  discussion  of  the  subject 
matter  of  a  branch  in  a  brief  form,  and  this  gen- 
erally needs  much  elaboration  to  be  adapted  to 
the  experience  and  the  present  knowledge  of  the 
pupils.  Much  information  that  is  said  to  be  pub- 
lished because  it  is  in  print  m  the  form  of  a  book 
is  not  really  published,  so  far  as  the  men  and  women 
of  the  world  are  concerned.  This  is  largely  true 
because  it  is  a  very  difficult  task  to  get  the  in- 
formation contained  from  the  words  given  by  the 


88  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

book.  It  becomes  necessary,  therefore,  for  a 
teacher  to  prepare  the  way  fully  so  that  the  pupils 
may  use  the  book  efficiently  in  the  required  prep- 
aration of  the  lessons. 

A  Test. — Geography  text-books  are  always  dif- 
ficult for  pupils  because  of  the  vocabulary  that 
an  author  must  use.  Even  at  the  best,  the  lan- 
guage employed  is  not  a  part  of  the  common  peo- 
ple's vocabularies,  and  the  pupils  find  themselves 
struggling  to  secure  the  thoughts  to  be  acquired 
that  are  so  securely  hidden  in  a  style  of  language 
that  is  not  at  all  famihar  to  them.  This  accounts, 
in  part,  for  much  of  the  unsatisfactory  preparation 
that  pupils  show  in  such  a  subject.  A  little  story 
of  an  actual  case  may  concretely  show  the  truth 
of  this  statement.  A  little  girl  was  assigned  a 
brief  lesson  in  a  descriptive  work  on  geography 
concerning  certain  facts  about  the  peoples  and  the 
productions  of  Asia.  Her  teacher  knew  that  her 
work  had  been  uniformly  unsatisfactory,  and  at- 
tributed the  failures  to  lack  of  diligent  study.  To 
overcome  this  apparent  defect  the  teacher  told  the 
pupil  that  she  must  thoroughly  prepare  the  lesson 
assignment  for  the  day,  or  she  would  be  severely 
punished  for  the  delinquency.  This  promise  of 
discipline  greatly  worried  the  pupil,  because  she 
felt  her  inability  to  do  what  was  asked.  Endeav- 
oring to  be  more  than  fair,  the  teacher  excused 


STUDY  89 

the  little  girl  from  the  school-room  and  allowed  her 
to  go  into  the  school-yard  under  a  beautiful  shade- 
tree  to  prepare  this  lesson.  It  happened  that 
the  superintendent  came  by  the  little  pupil  and 
stopped  to  inquire  regarding  her  work.  Learning 
the  situation,  he  took  the  text-book  and  carefully 
read  very  slowly  the  few  paragraphs  that  consti- 
tuted the  lesson.  As  he  went  along  he  stopped  at 
the  more  difficult  words  and  asked  their  meaning. 
Of  course  the  little  girl  could  not  give  proper  an- 
swers, because  many  of  these  words  were  outside 
of  her  vocabulary.  He  then  told  her  what  the 
words  meant  in  simpler  language,  and  gave  liberal 
and  generous  interpretations  to  the  sentences  that 
were  being  studied.  He  then  had  the  pupil  read 
the  lesson  to  him  and  make  explanations  as  she 
proceeded.  He  followed  this  by  asking  her  to 
recite  the  short  lesson  to  him  without  the  book 
in  hand.  This  systematic  plan  succeeded.  It  is 
needless  to  say  that  the  pupil  made  a  successful 
presentation  of  her  study  the  following  recitation 
hour.  This  work  did  not  take  more  than  a  quar- 
ter of  an  hour,  and  yet  the  pupil  had  fully  mas- 
tered a  difficult  lesson  that  would  have  been 
impossible  if  left  to  her  own  ingenuity  and  appli- 
cation. 

Open-Book  Lessons. — The  kind  of  instruction 
as  to  study  that  pupils  must  have  requires  much 


90  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

attention  and  thought  on  the  part  of  teachers, 
because  they  must  fit  the  needs  of  the  individual 
classes.  For  this  reason  the  best  way  is  to  study 
the  text-books  of  special  subjects  in  an  open-book 
recitation,  thus  making  sure  of  the  pupils'  under- 
standing the  subject  matter  to  be  learned.  By 
so  doing  a  short  time  in  preparation  beyond  the 
joint  work  done  will  be  all  that  will  be  required 
to  guarantee  success  with  the  subject.  The  text- 
book is  never  as  important  as  the  teacher,  because 
explanation  and  interpretation  of  the  thought  and 
the  acquiring  of  the  strange  vocabulary  are  the 
prominent  parts  in  study.  Attempting  to  master 
a  book  where  the  facts  stated  are  not  compre- 
hended is  an  impossible  undertaking.  Open-book 
recitations  have  the  advantage  of  closed-book 
recitations  in  the  sense  that  they  are  not  a  test 
of  the  memory  of  words  and  sentences,  but  are  a 
test  of  the  ability  to  translate  the  language  of  the 
text-book  into  the  every-day  language  of  the  pupil. 
Another  benefit  gained  is  that  the  pupils  are  shown 
how  the  teacher  studies  and  investigates  the  sub- 
ject, how  he  finds  the  unknown  words  in  the  dic- 
tionary, and  how  he  interprets  the  sentences  and 
classifies  them  by  illustration.  It  is  always  a 
benefit  to  follow  the  thinking  of  others,  recogniz- 
ing how  conclusions  and  opinions  are  reached  and 
how  differences  are  adjusted. 


STUDY  91 

Values. — Mental  development  and  intellectual 
progress  depend  largely  upon  the  results  that  in- 
dividual efforts  secure.  It  is  for  this  reason  that 
effective  methods  have  special  values.  Sitting 
at  a  table,  looking  at  a  book  steadfastly  and  ab- 
sorptively, is  not  certain  evidence  that  progress  in 
study  is  being  secured.  The  form  is  not  sufficient; 
the  results  are  the  actual  things  needed.  The 
movements  of  activity  may  be  a  fiction  or  a  farce, 
unless  the  pupil's  mind  is  completely  used  and  is 
possessed  by  reahties  that  cannot  be  mistaken. 
The  values  of  study  depend  upon  its  prosecution 
in  a  vigorous  spirit,  upon  its  being  active  and  direct 
in  its  object,  and  upon  its  being  so  abundant  in 
results  and  so  notable  in  developing  an  increase  of 
capability  and  strength  that  progress  and  growth 
in  the  pursuit  of  knowledge  are  shown  in  the  char- 
acter and  in  the  enlargement  of  Hfe. 


XIV 

THE  RECITATION 

Object. — The  period  of  time  allotted  to  any 
class  for  the  consideration  of  a  subject  in  any 
branch  of  study  is  called  the  recitation.  The  main 
object  of  such  an  assignment  is  to  enable  the 
teacher  to  investigate  the  preparation  in  the  as- 
signed topics  that  the  members  of  the  class  have 
made.  In  the  pubhc  schools  it  is  customary  to 
have  five  such  periods  a  week,  one  assignment  be- 
ing given  each  school  day.  In  the  country  school 
there  are  so  many  separate  classes  and  so  much 
reason  to  maintain  a  varied  programme  that  it 
would  be  better  if  some  of  the  branches,  like  writ- 
ing, drawing,  language,  hygiene,  and  general  les- 
sons in  literature  and  history,  were  assigned  only 
two  or  three  times  a  week,  thus  giving  opportunity 
for  many  things  to  be  done  that  are  now  generally 
omitted.  Under  the  programme  given  in  the 
chapter  on  management  a  school  could  have  all 
the  work  there  outlined  for  study  and  recitation, 
and  not  have  any  class  recitation  over  three  times 
a  week,  as  the  actual  work  in  arithmetic,  reading, 
geography,  and  other  branches  can  go  on  by  the 

92 


THE  RECITATION  93 

daily  oral  and  written  work  combined,  so  that  the 
teacher  gives  more  or  less  individual  instruction 
each  alternate  day,  and  oral  class  recitation  the 
other  days,  in  the  branches  here  mentioned. 

Value. — The  custom  of  conducting  recitations 
is  so  universal,  and  so  strongly  indorsed  by  teach- 
ers and  superintendents,  that  its  supreme  value 
is  very  rarel}^  questioned.  It  is  well,  then,  to  rec- 
ognize the  fact  that  what  is  really  wanted  in 
school  work  is  not  necessarily  formal  class  recita- 
tion so  much  as  a  definite  opportunity  for  the 
pupils  to  have  frequent  conferences  with  the 
teacher.  There  are  qualities  in  work  where  close 
supervision  exists,  and  where  much  personal  at- 
tention is  given  through  individual  instruction, 
that  are  better  in  the  main  than  can  be  obtained  by 
class  recitations.  The  method  of  individual  tutor- 
ing used  by  aristocratic  families  in  directing  the 
education  of  their  children  is  probably  the  most 
certainly  effective  of  all  plans  that  are  known. 
The  method  of  instruction  in  small  classes  of  not 
more  than  ten  pupils  that  was  used  by  the  Jesuits 
was  also  notably  successful,  but  it  must  be  remem- 
bered that  it  depended  to  a  degree  upon  the 
brighter  pupils  giving  instruction  to  their  slower 
class-mates.  Every  country  school  can  well  afford 
to  adopt  a  system  of  class  leaders  wherein  the 
better-informed  pupils  will  be  permitted  to  give 


94,  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

aid  and  instruction  to  other  pupils  in  the  school  as 
assistants  to  the  teacher.  This  plan  existed  in  the 
schools  organized  under  the  Lancasteran  system, 
where  one  head-teacher  undertook  to  teach  a  thou- 
sand pupils  through  the  help  of  class  leaders  previ- 
ously instructed.  The  extravagance  of  this  claim 
was  early  recognized,  and  a  reasonable  reduction 
of  pupils  to  a  single  teacher  was  made  a  necessity, 
but  the  importance  of  pupils  learning  from  each 
other  was  never  discredited.  Every  good-sized 
district  school  has  a  similar  condition  to  meet,  and 
in  no  way  can  results  be  more  definitely  guaranteed 
than  by  employing  all  the  talent  and  all  the  scholar- 
ship of  the  pupils  in  instructing  those  who  are  their 
inferiors  in  experience  and  in  knowledge. 

Economy. — Class  organization  is  adopted  as  a 
system  of  approved  instruction  because  such  a 
combination  of  individuals,  able  to  receive  the 
identical  lesson  at  the  same  time,  is  notably 
economical.  It  is  not  claimed  by  the  well-in- 
formed that  the  method  of  class  instruction  is 
superior  to  that  of  individual  instruction,  but  that 
excellent  results  can  be  obtained  by  using  class 
instruction,  provided  the  teacher  is  capable  and 
efficient  and  the  number  of  pupils  to  a  class  is  not 
too  large.  Even  in  class  instruction,  every  means 
is  used  to  insure  that  each  pupil  can  do  all  the 
work  assigned  the  class,  and  that  he  comprehends 


THE   RECITATION  95 

the  points  that  are  fundamental  and  important. 
It  is  also  recognized  that  the  pupils  in  a  class  ob- 
tain much  benefit  from  hearing  each  other  recite, 
from  the  different  points  of  view  presented,  and 
from  the  criticisms,  corrections,  and  supplementary 
instruction  that  the  teacher  gives  while  conduct- 
ing the  recitation.  A  well-handled  recitation  also 
adds  interest  to  the  subject,  compels  additional 
investigation  and  inquiry,  and  leads  to  a  constant 
conference  between  the  pupils  themselves  regard- 
ing the  facts  and  impressions  they  later  ascertain 
from  books  and  other  sources.  Economy  is  also 
largely  dependent  upon  the  careful  instruction 
that  the  teacher  gives  regarding  the  next  day's 
preparation,  since  much  more  is  readily  accom- 
phshed  when  the  pupils  are  well  informed  regard- 
ing the  task  assigned. 

Form. — There  is  no  absolute,  definite  form  of 
conducting  a  recitation  that  can  be  indorsed  as 
the  model  for  teachers  to  follow  and  that  can  be 
recommended  to  young  teachers  seeking  to  im- 
prove their  school  work.  The  best  and  the  most 
successful  way  to-day  may  need  much  modifica- 
tion to-morrow,  if  it  has  equivalent  success,  as 
every  day's  undertaking  must  meet  adequately  the 
necessities  in  the  class  and  in  the  subject  that  are 
experienced.  Stereotyped  lessons,  however  per- 
fect in  design  or  in  logic,  are  not  sufficient  to  guar- 


96  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

antee  success  because  freedom,  spontaneity,  and 
initiative  on  the  part  of  the  teacher  are  essential 
to  power  and  to  practical  capabihty.  Novelty 
is  of  recognized  value,  originality  is  a  notable  gift, 
while  manner  and  information  are  forces  that 
should  be  accepted  as  of  great  use.  There  is  much 
liability  of  experienced  teachers  becoming  formal 
and  mechanical  in  the  conduct  of  their  work,  so 
that  their  style  is  perfunctory  and  uninteresting, 
compelling  them  to  depend  upon  drill  and  repeti- 
tion for  obtaining  the  narrow  results  that  after 
education  will  test. 

Meeting  the  Expectation. — Pupils  are  keen  in 
their  insight  and  easily  reach  conclusions  regard- 
ing the  things  they  may  expect  in  the  recitation 
from  the  mechanical  teacher.  To  meet  these  pe- 
culiar conditions  they  make  definite  preparation, 
and  thus  suit  the  plans  and  methods  of  the  manage- 
ment so  perfectly  as  to  be  granted  better  records 
for  class  work  than  their  actual  merit  deserves.  By 
meeting  the  conditions  imposed  they  impress  the 
teacher  with  an  ability,  an  interest,  and  an  ap- 
plication that  they  do  not  possess.  To  overcome 
such  exigencies  teachers  should  break  with  the 
traditions,  and  avoid  all  plans  and  processes 
that  are  formal,  so  that  the  realities  may  be 
prominent  and  the  vital  and  the  personal  may 
dominate. 


THE  RECITATION  97 

Frauds. — There  are  subtleties  that  pupils  prac- 
tise upon  careless  and  pretentious  teachers  that 
are  very  cunning  and  very  effective.  Few  teach- 
ers, however  sincere  and  honest,  are  able  to  pro- 
tect the  recitation  hour  from  the  tricks  of  the 
trade  that  deception  gives  and  that  ingenuity 
develops.  It  is  thus  that  the  actual  assigned 
recitation  is  postponed  by  the  pupils'  asking  for 
information  on  topics  not  related,  or  partially  re- 
lated, to  the  subject  assigned  for  the  class  hour. 
The  success  of  such  a  plan  to  postpone  the  day  of 
recitation  depends  very  largely  upon  the  impres- 
sion of  interest  that  the  pupils  can  convey,  as  well 
as  the  wish  of  the  teacher  to  be  courteous  and  to 
be  considered  well-informed  on  a  broad  range  of 
subjects.  Another  way  that  is  equally  successful 
is  for  the  pupils  of  the  class  to  enter  into  a  debate 
on  certain  questions  that  they  bring  forward  in 
the  lesson  and  thus  exhaust  the  time  in  fruitless 
and  often  indeterminate  discussion.  In  a  similar 
way  pupils  can  turn  the  recitation  about  by  pro- 
pounding inquiries  ingeniously  and  compel  the 
teacher  to  do  the  reciting  rather  than  themselves — 
thus  reversing  the  plans  and  intentions  of  the 
teacher,  whose  main  object  was  to  examine  the 
pupils  as  to  their  progress  in  knowledge  and  re- 
quire them  to  talk  rather  than  to  use  the  time  in 
lecture  or  in  explanation. 


98  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

The  Plan. — It  is  well  to  recognize  that  a  well- 
conducted  recitation  calls  out  all  of  the  activities 
of  the  minds  of  the  pupils  through  demonstration, 
illustration,  statement,  and  application.  Each 
one  of  these  characteristics  must  appear  in  a  well- 
digested  plan  for  a  lesson.  An  oral  recitation  as  a 
statement  of  what  the  text-book  says  about  any 
topic  is  not  a  satisfactory  result,  even  if  absolutely 
correct,  unless  the  pupil  can  turn  it  over  and  illus- 
trate in  his  own  language,  completing  it  by  demon- 
stration and  appHcation.  A  written  recitation 
may  be  a  great  failure  from  the  fact  that  its  errors 
may  not  be  designated  and  completely  corrected, 
its  statements  may  be  lacking  in  essential  fulness 
and  completeness  in  understanding,  or  may  be 
overdone  and  lengthy  without  either  clearness  and 
precision  or  comprehensiveness.  For  this  reason 
a  combination  of  the  oral  and  the  written  methods 
is  essential.  The  oral  should  be  devoted  to  that 
part  that  would  take  a  long  time  to  prepare  and  is 
largely  explanatory,  while  the  written  should  be 
confined  to  that  which  demands  exact  statement 
and  can  be  put  into  brief  language,  in  order  to  en- 
able it  to  be  well-retained  in  memory  for  future 
use.  There  should  not  be  any  uniform  plan  in 
calling  upon  the  members  of  a  class  to  recite.  A 
class  roll  is  proper  for  a  record  of  attendance  and 
of  progress  and  of  results,  but  it  should  never  be 


THE  RECITATION  99 

used  in  any  definite  order.  When  a  class  is  small 
this  problem  may  not  arise,  but  when  the  class  is 
large  the  individual  pupils  cannot  be  easily  called 
upon  daily,  and  hence  they  can  be  made  to  hope 
that  they  may  systematically  recite,  and  also 
systematically  rest.  In  addition,  the  system  of 
permitting  volunteers  as  a  plan  of  recitation  to 
follow  may  lead  also  to  equivalent  abuses  and 
to  equally  unsatisfactory  results. 


XV 

THE  COMMONER 

The  Power. — The  teacher  is  never  independent 
of  the  control  of  the  community  he  serves,  because 
the  people  are  his  employers  and  consider  him  as 
a  public  servant.  He  is  a  part  of  the  machinery 
of  the  school  system  that  the  people  have  provided, 
and  is  recognized  as  a  necessary  factor  in  the  con- 
duct of  the  education  that  is  required  by  civiliza- 
tion, but  at  the  same  time  he  is  regulated  rather 
than  consulted,  dominated  rather  than  obeyed, 
and  controlled  rather  than  followed.  This  ex- 
plains the  phases  of  the  salary  question,  the  lack 
of  a  long  tenure  of  employment,  and  the  causes 
that  contribute  to  the  popularity  of  the  license 
system,  as  all  of  these  are  managed  by  the  people 
through  their  lay  representatives  that  have  been 
elected  or  appointed. 

The  Influence. — The  teacher  needs  to  rec- 
ognize this  political  situation  and  to  protect  him- 
self and  his  interests  by  cultivating  the  good-will 
and  the  hearty  support  of  as  many  of  the  people  as 

possible.     PoHtical  management  and  expediency 

100 


THE  COMMONER  101 

declare  that  the  only  way  that  the  teacher  can 
wield  an  influence  is  by  being  an  actual  commoner, 
so  that  he  is  always  approachable  and  is  thor- 
oughly appreciated  and  esteemed.  To  acquire 
the  ability  of  being  a  good  mixer  in  social  and  com- 
munal activities  is  helping  his  own  interests,  ad- 
vancing the  cause  of  the  school,  and  developing 
the  efficiency  of  the  masses.  The  wise  teacher  is 
one  of  the  people  in  every  sense,  a  sympathetic 
leader  rather  than  an  arbitrary  dictator,  a  con- 
genial spirit  as  a  creator  and  developer  rather  than 
as  an  egotist  or  an  aristocrat.  It  is  for  this  rea- 
son that  personal  acquaintance,  friendly  relations, 
helpful  sympathy,  and  comprehension  of  others' 
feelings  are  of  such  great  importance,  since  only  by 
such  relations  can  motives,  ambitions,  and  en- 
deavors be  properly  understood  and  employed  in 
actual  service. 

The  School. — There  was  a  day  when  the  school 
was  known  as  a  private  institution,  being  the  prop- 
erty of  the  teacher  who  managed  and  conducted 
it  as  any  other  private  business.  His  prosperity 
depended  upon  the  patronage  he  secured,  and 
hence  he  conducted  the  work  in  accordance  with 
the  demand  and  the  wish  of  those  who  intrusted 
to  him  the  education  of  their  children.  Such  a 
plan  gave  opportunities  only  to  those  who  could 
afford  to  pay  the  rates  and  meet  the  other  ex- 


102  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

penses,  and  hence  a  large  number  of  children  were 
deprived  of  the  rudiments  of  an  education.  In 
due  time  the  movement  for  universal  education 
became  so  strong  that  laws  were  passed  by  the  leg- 
islatures of  the  States  authorizing  the  assuming  of 
the  entire  control  and  expense  of  public  education. 
This  gave  public  ownership  and  also  opened  the 
opportunity  for  education  to  all  without  discrim- 
ination. In  doing  this  the  State  assumed  the 
right  to  decide  the  standards  of  knowledge  that  a 
teacher  must  possess,  the  limitation  of  the  course 
of  study  that  should  be  provided,  and  the  kind  and 
extent  of  the  system  that  should  be  organized, 
since,  by  controlling  the  expenditures,  all  other 
things  were  included  as  a  matter  of  course.  To 
do  the  work  prescribed,  school  boards  were  elected, 
teachers  were  employed,  salaries  were  determined, 
and  policies  were  announced.  In  the  change  that 
occurred  the  teacher  became  an  employee  of  the 
State,  selling  his  talent,  his  skill,  and  his  experience 
for  his  remuneration,  called  a  salary.  This  legal 
relationship  required  that  a  formal  contract  be 
made,  that  the  time  of  employment  be  determined, 
and  that  the  specifications  of  the  service  to  be  ren- 
dered should  be  explicit  and  complete.  All  these 
legal  formalities  located  authority,  distributed  re- 
sponsibihties,  and  defined  the  province  that  both 
parties  were  to  fulfil. 


THE  COMMONER  103 

The  Attitude. — By  this  organizing  of  communi- 
ties into  school  districts,  with  officers  appointed 
to  represent  the  attitude  and  intention  of  the  peo- 
ple, the  work  of  public  education  was  inaugurated. 
By  such  agencies  and  endeavors  society  undertook 
to  protect  itself  from  the  hindrances,  the  defects, 
and  the  evils  of  the  age,  deeming  its  institutions  to 
be  safer  in  the  hands  of  those  moderately  educated 
than  of  those  ignorant  and  illiterate.  It  was  also 
assumed  that  this  educational  preparation  for  hfe 
which  the  school  gave  should  shorten  the  time  that 
an  apprenticeship  must  take,  thus  benefiting  civ- 
ilization by'making  production  earlier  and  larger 
in  the  lives  and  the  services  of  the  coming  genera- 
tion. The  aim  at  social  betterment  and  at  social 
upHft  as  well  as  at  social  regeneration  that  was 
thus  undertaken  gave  to  education  a  province 
that  was  higher  in  rank  than  most  public  under- 
takings because  all  of  its  efforts  were  invested  in 
human  beings  rather  than  in  material  prosperity 
or  in  financial  progress.  This  attitude  toward  the 
great  things  that  were  to  be  done  through  co- 
operation became  the  hope  of  national  life  and  of  a 
nobler  civilization. 

Cultivating  the  Masses. — In  a  democracy  the 
support  of  the  masses  is  of  the  greatest  importance 
to  all  who  undertake  a  work  for  their  betterment. 
There  is  no  progress  in  which  they  do  not  have  a 


104  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

part.  There  is  no  movement  for  amelioration 
that  they  must  not  approve.  There  is  no  en- 
largement of  responsibilities  or  of  prospects  that 
they  must  not  assume.  The  comprehending  of 
this  condition  of  affairs  is  notably  important  to 
those  who  are  in  public-school  work,  since  it  gives 
abundant  reason  why  it  is  necessar}''  to  cultivate 
the  masses,  obtain  their  hearty  sympathy  and  co- 
operation, and  use  their  strength  and  help  in  every 
way  that  is  possible.  Effort  must  be  put  forth 
to  increase  the  good-will,  the  approval  and  the 
commendation  of  every  patron  so  that  the  sup- 
port given  and  the  faith  bestowed  may  be  equiva- 
lent to  every  need. 

Fellowship. — Wherever  fellowship  has  been  es- 
tabhshed  and  comprehended  the  best  discipline 
becomes  a  fact  and  the  best  application  a  reahty. 
The  wishes  of  the  teacher,  under  such  relations, 
become  a  law  to  the  people,  so  that  his  requests 
are  implicitly  recognized  as  more  powerful  than 
commands  in  directing  his  pupils.  It  is  then  that 
the  teacher's  example  counts  for  more  than  can  be 
explained,  while  his  power  of  control  is  magnified 
and  manifested  until  his  masterfulness  becomes 
remarkable.  This  same  influence  shows  itself  in 
the  gregarious  situations  that  schools  exhibit. 
Some  pupils  have  unusual  power  over  their  asso- 
ciates   and    schoolmates.     They    constitute    the 


THE  COMMONER  105 

ringleaders  in  rebellions,  controversies,  and  mis- 
chief-makings if  they  are  on  the  wrong  side,  and 
they  are  the  centre  of  all  that  is  good  and  true  if 
their  tendencies  are  toward  the  right  side.  In  such 
a  case  an  individual  pupil  counts  for  much  more 
than  his  own  power,  as  he  becomes  the  mouth- 
piece of  public  sentiment  and  the  consensus  of 
public  action,  bringing  results  that  are  cumulative 
in  character  and  in  effectiveness.  He  becomes  the 
voice  that  must  be  heard  and  heeded,  the  eye,  the 
ear,  the  thought-inventor,  the  will-expressor,  of 
those  who  rely  upon  his  guidance  and  his  sugges- 
tions. 

The  Vantage-Ground. — This  situation  becomes 
more  prominent  the  greater  the  work  is  in  scope 
and  in  capacity.  It  is  sure  and  certain  to  estab- 
lish this  social  relation  that  through  union  gives 
strength  and  advances  interests  and  success.  The 
teacher  must  be  identified  in  a  subordinate  way 
as  a  co-operator  in  everything  that  is  good  and 
true,  as  through  this  subordination  he  establishes 
his  right  and  chance  for  recognized  superiority  in 
educational  affairs.  In  no  way  can  he  win  more 
certainly  or  definitely  than  in  his  willingness  to 
work  ardently  and  sincerely  as  a  subordinate  in 
the  ranks  in  movements  where  others  lead.  By 
such  an  attitude  he  learns  to  know  the  effective 
people  of  the  community  and  acquires  the  knowl- 


106  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

edge  that  is  necessary  for  him  to  have  in  uniting 
the  people  in  the  right  way  to  the  accompHshing 
of  the  right  thing  for  the  services  he  is  attempt- 
ing to  render  to  society. 

Business. — ^Teaching  and  managing  a  school 
may  be  permitted  to  take  a  person  entirely  away 
from  business  ideas  and  business  people.  The 
strength  of  a  business  man  lies  in  his  social  rela- 
tions. He  must  know  many  people  and  select 
them  according  to  their  value.  It  is  possible  for 
a  teacher  to  neglect  an  acquaintance  with  business 
ideals,  business  methods,  or  business  people,  hav- 
ing all  of  his  following,  his  friends,  and  his  co-opera- 
tors among  those  who  can  be  of  no  service  to  him 
in  a  real  way.  The  teacher  needs  friends  among 
those  that  are  in  the  world  of  business,  because  it 
is  these  who  are  in  reality  determining  the  policies 
and  the  plans  of  the  school  by  determining  the 
possible  expenditures.  The  distance  between  the 
sets  in  society  is  very  great.  In  the  world  of 
artists,  poets,  and  authors  things  are  discussed  and 
believed  that  would  never  enter  into  the  mind  of 
a  business  man.  In  the  world  of  teachers  and  of 
schools  there  is  a  narrow  sphere  of  interest  that 
gives  no  idea  of  the  delights,  the  freedom  of  the 
mind,  and  the  breadth  of  view  of  other  callings. 
The  contempt  that  many  professional  persons  feel 
for  the  capability  of  making  money  grows  out  of 


THE  COMMONER  107 

the  atmosphere  of  ideas  in  which  they  hve.  They 
rarely  reahze  that  success  after  all  depends  very 
largely  upon  comprehending  business  ideas  and 
business  management.  The  best  teacher  com- 
bines the  professional  and  the  business  character- 
istics so  that  he  ma}^  be  at  home  with  both  the 
educator  and  the  business  man.  This  is  particu- 
larly essential  in  an  educational  career,  because 
business  judgment  and  experience  are  parts  of  the 
work  as  much  as  are  books,  methods  of  instruction, 
and  theories  of  training  men  and  women  for  life. 


XVI 

THE  YOUNG  PEOPLE 

The  Country. — There  is  no  better  place  for  a 
young  person  to  live  than  in  the  country,  because 
the  general  conditions  are  more  favorable  for  a 
normal  life.  There  is  a  constant  complaint  that 
the  young  people  of  to-day  are  not  satisfied  with 
the  opportunities  or  the  privileges  they  have  in  the 
country  homes,  and  that  they  are  constantly 
leaving  them  to  live  permanently  in  the  cities  and 
towns.  They  are  said  to  be  attracted  by  the  noise, 
the  bustle,  the  social  advantages,  and  the  apparent 
prosperity  that  they  observe  in  these  more  crowded 
centres,  and,  in  addition,  they  have  the  impres- 
sion that  there  is  easier  work  and  less  sacrifice  to 
secure  an  equivalent  income  in  the  city  than  in  the 
country.  While  many  of  these  things  are  more 
apparent  than  real,  yet  it  is  more  or  less  true  that 
the  country  life  can  make  too  much  of  drudgery 
and  not  enough  of  entertainment,  too  much  of 
hardships  and  too  little  of  the  common  pleasures. 
If  the  residents  of  the  country  were  to  pay  as  much 
proportionately    for    amusements,    for   entertain- 

lOS 


THE  YOUNG  PEOPLE  109 

ments,  and  for  social  advantages  as  is  paid  in  the 
towns  and  cities,  there  would  not  be  this  dearth 
of  interest  and  this  lack  of  satisfaction  that  now  is 
said  to  exist  in  such  localities. 

The  Better  Way. — The  country  people  are  able 
to  have  more  leisure  than  the  city  people,  if  they 
only  will  use  what  time  they  have.  Their  crops 
and  their  domestic  animals  do  not  stop  growing 
when  the  farmer  takes  a  day  now  and  then  for 
recreation,  as  his  business  can  be  so  organized 
that  such  days  may  be  frequent  and  no  loss  be 
suffered.  Since  these  things  are  absolutely  true, 
the  better  way  is  for  every  community  to  provide 
the  means  whereby  the  young  people  may  have 
opportunity  for  entertainment,  amusement,  rec- 
reation, and  social  life  in  accordance  with  their 
interests  and  their  demands.  If  the  school  plant 
has  been  provided,  as  already  has  been  suggested, 
there  is  a  place  for  the  young  people  to  come 
together  to  have  social  organizations  and  pleasures 
and  to  get  away  for  a  time  from  the  humdrum  and 
the  hard  work  that  are  their  daily  experience.  The 
acquiring  of  the  ability  to  enjoy  the  right  kind  of 
amusements,  entertainments,  and  bocial  oppor- 
tunities is  as  much  a  part  of  right  training  as  is 
studying  in  school  or  working  on  the  farm.  Dis- 
sipation always  follows  a  let-up  from  labor,  unless 
the  person  thus  released  from  the  strenuousness  of 


110  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

occupation  has  some  form  of  activity  and  recrea- 
tion to  which  he  can  turn  when  a  hoUday  comes. 
Many  men  debauch  themselves  with  the  drinking 
of  intoxicating  Hquors  and  other  accompanying 
vices,  because  they  have  not  learned  to  enjoy  real 
pleasures.  Whenever  time  hangs  heavy  on  their 
hands  they  do  not  know  how  to  occupy  themselves 
in  harmless  ways,  and  hence  turn  to  the  harmful 
and  the  evil.  A  holiday  becomes  thereby  a  curse 
rather  than  a  blessing  to  the  multitudes,  because 
they  have  not  been  taught  the  happiness  and  the 
enjoyment  that  can  come  from  the  true  activities 
of  recreation.  The  city  and  the  town  are  thus  a 
menace  to  the  country  youths  unless  they  are  pro- 
tected by  a  training  that  has  taught  them  a  better 
wa}^ 

What  Can  Be. — Wise  leadership  indicates  that 
every  school  centre  should  be  so  organized  as  to 
have  a  good,  equipped  playground  that  can  be 
used  by  the  young  men  and  boys  for  lawn  tennis, 
base-ball,  foot-ball,  basket-ball,  track  work,  out- 
door gymnasium  exercises,  and  other  athletic 
activities.  These  recreative  exercises  are  equally 
as  good  for  the  country  boy  and  girl  as  for  the 
town  boy  and  girl,  and  opportunities  should  be 
provided  for  such  privileges  at  public  expense. 
The  having  of  half-holidays  to  recognize  this  need 
of  young  people  is  only  giving  proper  considera- 


THE  YOUNG   PEOPLE  111 

tion  to  the  things  that  civiHzation  and  common- 
sense  commend.  Young  people  have  by  nature 
social,  aesthetic,  intellectual,  athletic,  and  spirit- 
ual faculties  that  demand  opportunity  for  exercise 
and  for  activity.  Nature's  demands  must  be  met 
if  they  are  to  be  brought  to  a  knowledge  of  nor- 
mal culture  and  right  development.  At  the  same 
time,  the  day  will  never  come  when  those  things 
that  are  elevating,  innocent,  pure,  beautiful,  and 
true  will  not  supply  the  personal  demand  better 
than  the  artificial,  the  wucked,  or  the  vicious,  if  the 
former  are  actually  provided  by  the  public  and 
are  made  attractive  and  useful.  In  the  same  way, 
the  programmes  that  can  be  held  during  the  winter 
evenings  at  the  school  building,  the  games  that  can 
be  played  in  the  gymnasium,  and  the  picnics  and 
dinners  that  may  be  held  will  all  contribute  to 
making  the  school  the  social  centre  that  every 
community  so  positively  needs. 

Organization  Necessary. — Such  extensions  and 
expansions  of  public  work  for  the  benefit  of  the 
whole  people  are  not  able  to  take  care  of  them- 
selves. They  cannot  be  left  to  the  spontaneity 
of  the  community.  They  should  be  organized  and 
conducted  by  the  people  through  the  proper  offi- 
cers, and  reasonable  expenditures  then  must  be 
made  on  the  grounds  of  necessity,  just  the  same 
as  is  now  made  for  highways,  bridges,  and  schools. 


112  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

The  provision  to  support  this  work  is  not  so  large 
that  any  community  could  not  afford  the  under- 
taking, and  the  expenditures  thus  made  would 
be  the  most  helpful  investments  that  the  public 
could  make,  because  they  guarantee  results  that 
are  essential  and  permanent.  Play  and  recreation 
are  so  important  and  so  beneficial  that  Httle  if  any 
argument  should  be  necessary  to  secure  the  ac- 
ceptance of  this  plan  of  extending  such  opportuni- 
ties to  those  not  in  attendance  upon  the  school. 
Such  work  should  be  systematic,  it  should  be  well 
managed,  those  who  take  it  should  submit  to  nec- 
essary regulations,  and  the  good  of  all  should  be 
the  main  consideration. 

Clubs  and  Library. — Boys'  and  girls'  clubs  for 
agricultural  and  home  economics  work  exist  now 
in  many  school  districts  and  townships.  These  or- 
ganizations could  be  much  improved  and  strength- 
ened by  having  the  school  plant  become  the  social 
civic  centre  for  meetings,lectures,  library  work,  and 
fairs.  There  is  no  question  that  all  these  things 
are  beneficial  and  praiseworthy  and  that  they  need 
help  and  encouragement  to  reach  a  successful 
standard.  In  connection  with  this  a  community 
library,  made  up  of  publications  to  suit  the  needs 
of  the  young  as  well  as  the  mature,  would  be  of 
the  largest  service.  Such  a  combination  of  effort 
and   of  endeavor  will  give  greater   results   than 


THE  YOUNG  PEOPLE  113 

individual  initiative  could  possibly  produce,  even 
if  larger  expenditure  is  made,  since  co-operation 
decreases  the  expense  and  enlarges  the  opportuni- 
ties for  increased  service  for  the  public  welfare. 


XVII 

SUPERVISION 

The  Present. — To-day  there  is  no  real  super- 
vision of  country  schools,  although  there  is  an  at- 
tempted supervision  provided  under  the  name  of 
the  county  superintendent.  This  officer  is  ex- 
pected to  manage  a  large  territory,  and  in  addition 
to  that  take  charge  of  a  large  number  of  other  kinds 
of  so-called  educational  work  that  are  official  busi- 
ness in  their  nature  and  therefore  must  receive 
first  attention.  As  a  consequence,  real  supervision 
of  the  schools  receives  but  limited  attention  and 
the  personal  work  of  improvement  of  the  teach- 
ers and  of  the  schools  is  largely  postponed  until 
some  future  time.  Despite  these  interferences  the 
county  superintendency  has  done  much  that  has 
been  a  benefit  to  education.  This  has  been  se- 
cured by  conducting  teachers'  institutes,  by  hold- 
ing educational  meetings,  and  by  arousing  popular 
interest  through  organizing  clubs  and  reading  cir- 
cles. It  has  also  prominently  contributed  to  sys- 
tematizing the  work  and  to  improving  the  spirit 
of  the  service  by  addresses  given  to  the  people 
at   public   meetings,  by   circulars  of  information 

114 


SUPERVISION  115 

mailed  to  school  officers  and  teachers,  and  by  con- 
tributing in  service  to  farmers'  institutes  and  clubs, 
as  opportunity  offers. 

The  Future. — But  the  country  school  of  the 
future  must  receive  a  better  and  a  more  complete 
supervision  than  this  has  given,  since  visitation  of 
schools  should  become  a  reality,  the  personal  sup- 
port of  the  supervising  officer  should  be  direct 
rather  than  indirect,  while  the  improvement  in 
methods  and  management  should  be  immediate 
and  effective.  No  superintendent,  however  schol- 
arly, strong,  or  skilled,  can  efficiently  supervise  a 
territory  as  large  as  the  average  county  and  no  in- 
dividual can  succeed  in  real  supervision  that  does 
not  have  authority  with  the  appointing  power  so 
as  to  assist  in  deciding  the  employment  of  teachers 
and  many  other  matters  that  demand  the  expert. 
The  principal  problem  that  the  future  must  solve 
is  the  organizing  of  a  system  of  supervision  so  that 
it  has  the  power  to  prevent  any  but  competent 
teachers  from  being  permitted  to  take  charge  of 
the  schools.  To  do  this  will  mean  that  successful 
supervision  should  not  undertake  to  direct  and 
manage  the  schools  of  more  than  three  or  four 
townships  of  a  county.  Such  a  plan  of  organiza- 
tion would  permit  frequent  supervisory  visits  and 
would  enable  such  officer  to  know  completely  the 
strength  or  the  weakness  of  the  teachers  employed. 


116  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

and  would  guarantee  trustworthy  advice  in  de- 
termining the  annual  appointment  of  teachers. 
These  principals,  or  district  superintendents,  should 
devote  part  of  their  time  to  assisting  and  direct- 
ing the  individual  teachers  in  charge  of  the  sepa- 
rate schools,  and,  in  addition,  to  co-operating  with 
the  people  to  such  an  extent  as  to  improve  and  de- 
velop the  many  activities  that  are  recognized  as 
so  necessary  to  the  life  of  a  progressive  and  happy 
community. 

The  Province  of  Such  Supervision. — Under  the 
process  of  selection  that  has  gone  on  for  many 
years  the  district  school-teachers  are  almost  en- 
tirely women.  While  this  condition  is  due  to 
economical  reasons  in  part,  yet  it  is  also  due  to  the 
fact  that  women  have  proved  themselves  to  be  well 
adapted  to  the  public  elementary  school  service, 
and  the  patrons  rightly  consider  them  to  be  pref- 
erable to  men  in  such  schools.  However  this  may 
be,  there  is  yet  need  for  work  in  the  schools  in  agri- 
culture, mechanic  arts,  and  related  lines  that  men 
are  best  qualified  to  give,  as  society  is  at  present 
organized,  and  for  that  reason  a  limited  time  should 
be  given  in  all  these  schools  to  the  things  that  a 
man  is  better  able  to  do  to  help  in  these  directions. 
Under  his  inspection,  advice,  instruction,  and  su- 
pervision the  work  in  agriculture  could  be  admira- 
bly managed,  the  boys'  special  work  on  the  home 


SUPERVISION  117 

farms  could  be  investigated,  recorded,  and  rec- 
ognized, and  the  experimental  and  testing  work 
that  should  be  conducted  on  the  demonstration 
farm  or  garden  belonging  to  the  school  could  also 
be  supervised  and  managed.  At  the  same  time 
he  could  inspect,  direct,  assist,  and  co-operate  with 
the  teacher  in  all  the  work  done  in  the  school,  and 
thus  bring  about  a  unity  of  effort  and  a  harmony 
of  service  that  would  be  entirely  lacking  without 
such  supervision.  While  women  teachers  can  do 
the  work  in  home  economics  and  often  in  manual 
training,  yet  the  advice  and  experience  of  the 
supervisor  would  be  very  valuable  indeed.  In 
addition,  he  should  have  a  prominent  part  in  all 
the  special  meetings  that  are  held  for  the  improve- 
ment of  the  community  interests  and  of  the  school 
activities,  as  such  service  only  needs  testing  to  be 
realized  and  appreciated  as  a  permanent  produc- 
tive investment. 

The  Ends  of  Supervision. — The  district  super- 
intendent will  become  a  new  factor  in  the  upbuild- 
ing of  the  community,  if  he  is  appreciative  of  the 
greatness  and  the  value  of  country  life  and  coun- 
try opportunities.  He  will  help  largely  in  devel- 
oping a  unity  of  spirit  and  a  heartiness  of  action  if 
he  is  possessed  of  the  right  qualifications  and  the 
progressive  attitude.  The  ends  of  supervision  are 
not  so  much  the  securing  of  certain  standardiza- 


118  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

tions  in  the  branches  of  study  and  in  the  scope  of 
work  undertaken  as  they  are  to  arouse  pubHc 
sentiment,  cultivate  public  interest,  and  secure 
public  action  on  all  matters  that  are  the  deciding 
questions  in  determining  the  object  of  education, 
the  purpose  of  school  work,  and  the  training  that 
a  human  Hfe  should  have  in  this  best  of  all  envi- 
ronments. He  is,  therefore,  one  of  the  people  and 
occupies  a  place  of  nearness  in  his  leadership  that 
could  not  be  possible  in  a  larger  territory  and  with 
more  complex  functions  of  service.  He  is  in  reahty 
the  field  agent  in  educational  activities  and  has 
as  much  a  province  in  serving  the  people  in  general 
as  he  has  in  serving  the  teachers  and  the  pupils  in 
particular. 

The  Broadness  of  Educational  Organization. — 
It  is  thus  decided  that  education  is  a  great  under- 
taking, not  a  small  undertaking;  that  the  masses 
of  the  people  have  not  yet  had  a  vision  of  what  is 
in  store  for  them  and  for  their  children;  that  the 
things  that  have  already  been  done  are  small  in- 
deed as  compared  to  what  is  going  to  be  done. 
This  nation  has  the  resources  to  undertake  these 
great  functions  of  civilization  and  government,  it 
has  the  people  that  can  be  brought  to  this  high 
grade  of  success  and  enlightenment,  it  has  oppor- 
tunities that  are  not  trammelled  by  custom,  law, 
or  precedent,  it  has  the  time  to  accomplish  what  is 


SUPERVISION  119 

essential  to  a  larger  prosperity  and  a  broader 
utility,  and  it  has  the  disposition  to  surpass  the 
past  by  the  accomplishments  of  the  future.  To 
reach  all  these  ideals  means  that  experts  must  be 
secured  to  help  the  people  to  improve  all  the  re- 
lations that  are  possible:  education,  occupation, 
industries,  and  conservation;  and  thus  give  the 
heritage  that  freedom  and  intelligence  confer. 

The  Expert  in  Civilization. — The  expert  is  de- 
manded in  every  line  of  business,  governmental 
undertaking,  and  special  progress.  It  is  to  such  as 
these  that  all  must  turn  whenever  improvement 
and  progress  are  to  be  sought.  It  is  thus  that  farm- 
ing, stock-raising,  stock-judging,  soil  conserva- 
tion, soil  reclamation,  and  all  questions  of  modern 
agricultural  Hfe  and  improvement  can  make  most 
development  and  most  progress.  The  attempt  to 
do  without  the  expert  is  not  only  foolish  but  reck- 
less. The  scholar  must  be  the  man  that  can  do 
things  as  well  as  think  things,  and  such  a  combina- 
tion is  needed  in  the  school-room  as  teacher,  as  well 
as  in  the  field  as  promoting  agent — the  district 
supervisor  of  education  and  progress.  This  view 
of  organization  is  not  a  fanciful  one,  but  a  prac- 
tical, sensible  one.  When  the  original  country 
school  was  organized,  and  the  old-fashioned  school- 
house  erected  and  equipped,  the  expenditures  for 
building,  maintenance,  and  teaching  involved  more 


120  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

expense  pro  rata  on  assessed  valuation,  and  more 
sacrifice  upon  the  people  individually  of  that  day, 
than  all  the  improvements,  enlargements,  and 
developments  contemplated  by  these  recommenda- 
tions would  cost  the  present  generation.  Let  the 
people  of  to-day  do  as  well  as  their  fathers  in  pro- 
portion to  their  means  and  civilization,  and  country 
life  will  be  a  success  in  every  respect. 


XVIII 
THE  PLACE  OF  RECREATION 

The  Unity. — Every  normal  human  being  de- 
mands recreation  as  a  part  of  his  experience.  He 
may  have  had  exercise  and  still  have  no  recreation. 
There  is  need  for  work  to  be  a  part  of  human  life. 
The  same  thing  is  true  as  regards  rest.  Equally 
true  must  recreation  form  a  part  of  the  experience 
of  every  individual  and  of  every  country  com- 
munity. It  is  a  fact  that  many  country  school  dis- 
tricts are  entirely  lacking  in  the  possession  of  a 
social  centre — a  place  where  the  adults  as  well  as 
the  children  can  come  together  and  enjoy  a  com- 
panionship that  is  essential  as  well  as  desirable. 
Play  constitutes  a  proper  factor  in  a  child's  life, 
if  he  is  given  a  chance  for  full  and  free  develop- 
ment. Work  is  no  substitute  for  play,  and  parents 
and  teachers  who  treat  children  as  not  needing 
opportunity  for  play  are  neither  scientific  nor 
sensible  in  their  practice.  The  playground  is  an 
essential  factor  in  educational  progress  and  should 
have  its  proper  assignment  of  time  on  the  pro- 
gramme. That  a  human  life  is  a  unity  should 
never  be  forgotten.     That   the  mind  consists  of 

121 


122  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

many  ways  of  operating,  all  of  which  should  be 
given  a  chance,  is  true.  That  the  social  contact 
of  teacher  with  pupil  and  pupil  with  pupil  on  the 
playground,  and  in  the  other  social  activities  of 
the  school,  is  of  lasting  benefit  must  not  be  over- 
looked. 

The  Playground. — Play  needs  to  be  organized 
and  classified  as  well  as  work.  It  has  its  place  in  a 
systematic  training  that  should  not  be  ignored. 
Ample  privileges  and  complete  facilities  must  be 
provided  if  a  satisfactory  education  is  to  be 
granted.  To  learn  games  and  to  practise  them 
to  secure  efficiency  are  of  the  largest  importance, 
because  an  individual  must  acquire  a  good  grade 
of  skill  really  to  enjoy  the  recreation  that  his  nature 
truly  needs.  The  small  school,  with  its  large  yard 
as  a  playground,  conducted  by  a  teacher  that 
successfully  instructs  in  recreative  exercises  that 
develop  agility  and  capability  in  the  pupils,  gives 
the  right  plan  of  education.  The  large  school 
with  limited  playground,  and  with  a  lack  of  op- 
portunity for  the  social  development  of  children, 
lacks  real  interest  and  is  unable  to  offer  more  than 
a  partial  and  incomplete  education.  The  move- 
ment for  municipal  playgrounds  in  the  greater 
cities  is  in  response  to  nature's  demand  for  a  nor- 
mal development  of  the  native  powers  of  children. 
The  government  of  children,  their  ability  to  study 


THE  PLACE  OF  RECREATION  123 

energetically,  their  capability  in  their  intellectual 
activities,  are  greatly  improved  when  the  demands 
of  their  whole  nature  are  fully  met  and  the  op- 
portunities that  are  essential  are  conferred. 

Value  of  Recreation. — Recreation  is  too  fre- 
quently confused  with  dissipation  and  is  too  com- 
monly classified  as  an  actual  waste  of  time  and 
strength.  Games  are  also  confused  by  some  per- 
sons with  gambling  and  moral  ruin,  because 
games  of  chance  and  of  skill  are  used  by  perverted 
people  as  a  basis  of  betting  and  gambling.  Harm- 
less, innocent,  beneficial  recreative  games  do  not 
deserve  such  ignominy  because  their  province  is 
sometimes  abused  by  degraded  and  wicked  per- 
sons. The  American  idea  of  exercise  is  that  of 
walking  a  certain  number  of  miles,  of  sawing  so 
many  cords  of  wood,  of  ploughing  so  many  rows  of 
corn,  of  taking  a  buggy  or  an  auto  ride  of  an  hour, 
of  working  vigorously  for  a  quarter  of  an  hour  a 
wall  machine,  the  whole  object  being  work  and 
nothing  more.  The  American  idea  of  recreation 
is  that  of  going  on  some  railway  trip  for  ten  days, 
of  taking  an  ocean  voyage,  of  going  fishing  or 
hunting,  of  attending  some  so-called  social  func- 
tion— all  on  a  theory  that  change  of  activity  gives 
what  is  needed  and  the  best  way  to  dispose  of  it 
is  to  take  large  quantities  at  some  time  in  the 
year  when  business  is  slack  and  regular  work  can 


124  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

be  omitted.  Proper  recreation  is  a  part  of  every 
day's  programme,  and  the  business  and  profes- 
sional worlds  make  a  great  mistake  by  violating 
nature's  law.  The  labor  world  needs  fewer  hours 
of  work  and  more  hours  of  genuine  healthy  recrea- 
tion in  order  to  serve  fully  and  successfully  the 
occupations  that  they  follow.  The  reason  that  so 
many  people  dissipate  by  drunkenness  and  by 
wretchedness  every  holiday  they  have  is  because 
they  have  never  acquired  any  skill  in  such  recre- 
ations as  are  sane  and  healthful,  and  hence,  when 
time  is  given  to  enjoy  at  their  pleasure,  they  at 
once  drift  into  the  most  degrading  dissipations. 

Applied  to  Teaching. — The  recreative  side  of 
class  work  should  also  be  recognized  and  employed. 
The  work  can  be  so  organized  that  it  is  highly  en- 
joyable. The  teacher  should  lead  in  the  making 
of  the  learning  and  the  reciting  of  lessons  as  full 
of  the  enjoyable  as  possible.  There  are  kinds  of 
harmless  competition  that  are  very  enjoyable  and 
entertaining,  and  these  should  be  introduced  into 
class  work  as  normal  and  valuable.  The  conduct 
of  a  school  does  not  need  to  be  humdrum  or  dicta- 
torial to  be  a  virtue-training  agency.  Such  a  plan 
has  been  too  long  adopted  by  many  good  teachers 
as  the  proper  kind  of  discipline  to  maintain.  As- 
ceticism is  not  in  conformity  to  either  American- 
ism or  democratic  conceptions  of  liberty,  and  it  is 


THE   PLACE  OF  RECREATION  125 

not  the  proper  method  to  insure  maturit}^  or  re- 
sponsibilit}'.  In  all  life  and  in  all  schools  there  is 
enough  monotony  and  humdrum  that  must  exist 
at  the  best,  and  there  is  thus  no  need  to  make 
them  a  practice  as  if  they  might  produce  virtue 
and  capacity,  while  in  reality  they  induce  and 
compel  contrary  tendencies  and  possibilities. 

The  Province  Defined. — Education  is  not  the 
isolation  of  a  human  being  when  it  is  rightly  con- 
ducted. Its  real  province  is  to  fit  him  to  live  hap- 
pily and  blessedly  with  others.  Education  should 
make  a  person  more  human  and  more  natural,  not 
more  conventional  and  more  artificial.  It  is  not 
removing  one  from  life  and  common  experience, 
because  it  is  truly  getting  one  ready  for  a  broader 
sympathy  and  a  wider  efficiency.  It  is  not  to 
raise  him  to  a  higher  caste  of  exclusiveness,  but  to 
prepare  him  for  the  largest  adaptability  as  a  com- 
moner. The  school  is  the  place  where  the  teacher 
lives  with  the  children,  where  he  contributes  daily 
to  the  social  progress  of  the  pupils  in  happiness 
and  character,  where  he  secures  the  kind  of  atti- 
tudes toward  the  things  of  civilization  that  the 
pupils  normally  believe  and  thus  enables  them  to 
act  the  part  of  contributors  to  the  social  uplift. 
The  deepest  and  most  lasting  enjoyments  in  life 
are  not  those  of  the  appetites  and  the  senses; 
they  are  not  found  in  the  frivolities  and  dissipations 


126  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

of  the  age;  they  are  not  in  the  extravagances  and 
the  abuses  of  the  physical  nature;  since  they  truly 
belong  to  the  higher  activities  of  the  mind  and  the 
soul.  Hence,  the  good  school  is  an  actual,  living 
social  centre  where  the  work  is  so  conducted  that 
souls  are  born  into  the  kingdom  of  light  and  pros- 
perity by  recognizing  the  greatest  possibilities  that 
the  world  of  happiness  and  of  success  can  produce. 


XIX 

TAXATION  AND  THE  STATE 

The  Business  Side. — The  solving  of  the  prob- 
lem of  country  schools  is  as  much  a  business  ques- 
tion as  it  is  a  professional  question.  The  getting 
of  both  of  these  phases  of  activity  into  a  practica- 
ble working  condition  is  no  simple  matter.  The 
leaving  of  the  initiative  to  the  local  community 
gives  no  assurance  of  reasonable  progress  or  of 
possible  progress,  because  this  plan  divides  a  State 
into  so  many  individual  units  that  a  great  part  of 
them  can  be  indifferent  to  the  important  needs  of 
the  present  day  and  decline  to  adopt  a  policy  or 
a  plan  that  guarantees  efficiency.  Hence,  most 
States  are  beginning  to  recognize  that  there  must 
be  State  initiative  as  well  as  local  initiative  and 
that  the  State  should  have  a  large  part  in  conduct- 
ing a  popular  educational  system.  At  the  same 
time  there  must  be  enough  local  initiative  and 
local  management  to  insure  local  interest  and  local 
enthusiasm,  because  there  is  nothing  so  popular 
in  success  as  that  which  is  obtained  by  local  en- 
deavor at  local  cost. 

The  Part  of  the  State. — The  work  of  the  State 
should  be  that  of  inducing  investment,  encourag- 

127 


128  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

ing  activity,  urging  greater  efficiency,  and  demand- 
ing actual  results  such  as  are  absolutely  essential 
to  progress  and  development.  These  can  be  easily 
secured  when  there  is  a  distribution  of  State  funds 
to  the  local  communities  according  to  accomplish- 
ment and  endeavor  rather  than  according  to  popu- 
lation or  to  area  of  territory.  What  the  schools 
need  is  efficiency,  and  nothing  less  than  that  should 
be  allowed  to  exist  whenever  State  funds  are  ac- 
cepted and  used  in  conducting  the  schools.  Even 
the  small  amount  of  money  now  annually  distrib- 
uted by  most  of  the  States,  if  it  were  bestowed  for 
actual  results,  would  produce  much  more  good  than 
the  present  system  of  distribution  can  secure.  The 
State  could  contribute  largely  to  the  development 
of  interest  and  improvement  if  it  controlled  the 
distribution  of  one-fourth  or  one-third  of  the  in- 
come necessary  to  support  efficient  schools.  This 
money  could  be  raised  by  general  taxation  and 
then  be  allotted  as  subsidies  for  actual  stand- 
ards of  accomplishment.  By  so  doing  indepen- 
dence and  local  management  could  be  induced 
to  undertake  enterprises  of  a  kind  which  would 
be  entirely  neglected  and  unappreciated  without 
financial  co-operation.  ^  >. 

State  Subsidy  as  a  Plan. — This  is  not  a  new 
plan  of  support  or  of  government.  The  State  has 
tested  it  in  many  other  fields  than  the  country 


TAXATION  AND  THE  STATE  129 

school,  and  in  every  case  it  has  resulted  in  activity 
and  in  additional  investment.  State  subsidy  has 
been  used  to  promote  teachers'  institutes,  agricult- 
ural fairs,  farmers'  institutes,  short-course  farm- 
ers' schools,  county  agricultural  secondary  schools, 
high  schools,  grammar  schools,  and  even  teacher- 
training  in  high  schools,  and  the  results  all  show 
what  would  immediately  happen  if  State  funds 
were  placed  within  reach  of  country  school  dis- 
tricts when  certain  reasonable  conditions  are  fully 
met  and  certain  definite  improvements  are  shown 
to  competent  inspection.  Payment  on  results  has 
been  used  in  other  countries  than  the  United 
States  for  the  expanding  and  encouraging  of  ele- 
mentary education  for  the  masses;  payment  on  re- 
sults has  been  the  system  of  normal-school  teacher- 
training  used  in  Pennsylvania  for  many  years;  and 
payment  on  results  will  be  the  most  important 
factor  in  adjusting  and  deciding  the  country- 
school  problems  of  the  present  age  wherever  it  is 
thoroughly  applied. 

Inspection. — The  introduction  of  the  system  of 
a  State  subsidy  for  country  schools  will  necessarily 
demand  an  enlargement  of  the  work  of  inspection 
and  supervision.  These  are  necessary  factors  in 
seeking  the  right  development  of  any  educational 
system,  and  without  them  a  State  subsidy,  how- 
ever liberal  and  generous,  would  not  be  productive 


130  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

of  certain  results.  This  inspection  should  be  both 
local  and  State,  and  there  should  be  a  helpful  co- 
operation that  would  develop  the  right  spirit  and 
the  right  condition.  Those  counties  that  secured 
the  results  sought  should  receive  a  reward  in  in- 
creased pay  for  the  inspectors  and  enlarged  op- 
portunities for  the  work  being  done.  Such  an 
organization  would  require  a  State  institute  for 
inspectors  and  department  supervisors  that  would 
be  organized  by  the  State  superintendent  of  pub- 
lic instruction  and  that  would  include  such  work, 
lectures,  and  round-tables  as  would  produce  a 
positive  efficiency  that  could  be  fully  realized  in 
the  work  to  be  done  in  the  local  districts.  These 
inspectors  and  supervisors  should  be  active  fac- 
tors in  the  holding  of  institutes  for  the  local  teach- 
ers in  order  to  develop  a  condition  of  harmony 
that  would  insure  an  approximation  toward  ex- 
cellence in  knowledge  and  in  management. 

The  Teachers. — When  the  State  has  a  part  in 
the  paying  of  the  expenses  of  country-school  edu- 
cation; when  the  system  of  inspection  has  become 
a  business  and  a  vocation;  when  educational  en- 
deavor is  a  reality  and  a  purpose,  then  the  stand- 
ard that  the  teacher  must  reach  can  be  defined 
and  enforced.  The  capability  and  the  scholar- 
ship of  a  teacher  should  be  determined  by  going 
to  a  properly  organized  school  and  completing  a 


TAXATION  AND  THE  STATE  131 

reasonable  course  rather  than  by  a  meagre  and 
limited  examination  such  as  is  by  law  now  a  com- 
mon system  of  licensing  persons  to  teach  children 
and  receive  public  money.  Training,  not  exam- 
ining, should  be  the  door  to  professional  standing 
in  all  public  service.  Teachers  will  not  be  better 
qualified,  they  will  not  be  better  educated,  they 
will  not  be  better  trained,  until  there  is  reason  for 
their  meeting  an  improved  standard  and  until 
there  is  money  to  pay  them  for  improved  services. 
Then,  the  country-school  teacher  is  a  special  teacher 
just  as  much  as  kindergartners,  primary  teachers, 
or  language  teachers  are  special  teachers,  and  they 
should  be  valued  for  their  specialization  and  for 
their  adaptability  and  fitness  to  enter  into  country 
life  and  country  ideals  of  nature  and  culture.  They 
need  much  knowledge  that  is  not  possessed  by 
city  teachers,  they  need  large  ideas  of  their  oppor- 
tunities that  present-day  possibilities  do  not  allow, 
and  they  need  an  interest  and  a  spirit  that  are  pos- 
sible only  where  nature  and  man  come  into  such 
close  relations.  The  State,  and  the  State  alone, 
can  do  these  things,  can  enforce  these  standards, 
and  can  compel  obedience. 

The  Local  Field. — These  organized  activities  are 
all  commended  and  approved  and  advised  because 
the  local  field  must  be  reached,  the  local  interest 
must  be  improved,  and  the  local  initiative  must  be 


132  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

called  into  the  highest  continuous  activity.  The 
supreme  importance  of  this  work,  the  grandeur 
of  civiHzation's  efforts,  the  conservation  of  the 
resources  of  the  country,  the  enlargement  of  the 
possibilities  of  manhood  and  womanhood,  the  im- 
provement of  the  means  of  culture  and  wealth, 
the  increasing  of  the  usefulness  and  the  helpfulness 
of  money  and  property,  the  expanding  of  the 
chances  for  civilization — all  depend  upon  honest 
management,  organized  efficiency,  and  capable 
training  granted  to  the  common  people.  Since 
these  things  are  so  absolutely  true,  it  seems  that 
some  State  subsidy  system  is  the  better  way  to 
produce  early  and  definite  results  in  country  school 
systems. 


XX 

THE  DEMONSTRATION  SCHOOLS 

The  Test. — Educational  work  depends  upon 
demonstration  and  experience  for  its  acceptance 
by  the  masses.  Whatever  results  can  be  seen  and 
identified  as  specially  beneficial  to  personal  suc- 
cess or  to  individual  and  social  progress,  these 
results  are  enthusiastically  approved  and  highly 
commended.  The  country  schools  are  so  near  the 
masses,  and  are  so  definitely  determined  in  their 
scope  and  character  by  the  masses,  that  theories 
which  call  for  expenditure  and  investment  in  order 
to  prove  their  correctness  are  rarely  given  an  op- 
portunity to  be  tested  and  investigated.  This  con- 
dition compels  the  masses  to  be  conservative  on  all 
public  problems  that  require  money  for  their  con- 
sideration and  solution,  and  also  causes  them  to 
be  doubtful  of  and  opposed  to  every  proposition 
that  has  not  been  established  by  experience  as 
wise,  prudent,  and  economical.  Then  the  masses 
secure  their  property  and  their  money  in  such 
direct  and  arduous  ways  that  they  know  exactly 
how  much  labor  and  sacrifice  these  accumula- 
tions have  cost,  and  for  that  reason  they  are  well 

133 


134  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

satisfied  with  public  affairs  as  they  are,  provided 
they  find  their  maintenance  not  financially  burden- 
some. 

The  Progress  Made. — It  is  to  be  recognized  that 
the  country  school  of  to-day  is  very  similar  in  or- 
ganization, aim,  and  results  to  the  schools  that 
were  originally  opened  by  the  pioneers  of  the  sev- 
eral States.  The  school-houses,  the  school-yards, 
the  teachers,  and  the  course  of  instruction  have  not 
materially  or  personally  changed  in  the  past  fifty 
years.  The  progress  made  in  transportation,  in 
mail  facilities,  in  other  kinds  of  communication, 
in  financial  matters,  in  municipal  management  and 
improvement,  in  highways,  in  secondary  and  higher 
education,  and,  in  fact,  in  almost  every  fine  that 
can  be  suggested,  has  been  very  notable,  but  the 
country  school  is  the  same  institution  in  this 
greatly  enlarged  environment  as  it  was  in  the  days 
of  primitive  society.  This  condition  is  not  due  to 
lack  of  supervision  alone,  but  to  lack  of  aim,  to 
lack  of  comprehension  of  the  problem,  to  inde- 
pendence of  school  districts,  to  notions  of  econ- 
omy, and  to  unappreciation  of  the  money  value 
of  competent  and  scholarly  teaching. 

Independence  a  Bar. — The  original  organization 
of  school  districts  on  the  independent  local  plan 
has  been  a  bar  to  any  agitation  for  improvement 
and  for  reorganization  because  the  local  community 


THE  DEMONSTRATION  SCHOOLS  135 

had  rights  that  were  necessary  to  recognize  and  to 
respect.  It  was  rightly  assumed  by  the  people 
that  it  was  for  them  to  initiate  such  reforms  and 
make  such  expenditures  as  they  deemed  necessary, 
it  being  the  business  of  no  other  higher  govern- 
ment to  undertake  to  require  reforms  or  improve- 
ments. The  desire  to  keep  expenditures  at  the 
minimum  in  the  ambition  to  get  ahead  in  the  world 
by  careful  saving  of  the  family  and  personal  re- 
sources, the  lack  of  communal  information  as  to 
what  was  being  done  elsewhere  in  the  cities  and 
towns,  developed  a  spirit  of  self-satisfaction  and  of 
willingness  to  let  things  alone,  while  the  accumu- 
lation of  wealth  and  the  great  prosperity  of  the 
country  communities  so  satisfied  the  people  that 
they  did  not  feel  the  need  for  anything  better  and 
more  satisfactory  than  they  had.  It  was  such 
conditions  as  these  that  produced  an  anomalous 
status  as  regards  education,  showing  undertakings 
and  activities  that  do  not  comparatively  conform 
to  the  progress  found  on  every  hand  concerning  all 
other  kinds  of  pubhc  enterprise. 

The  State's  Province. — Education  is  the  one 
great  undertaking  that  has  been  left  to  local  in- 
terest and  local  initiation.  It  is  of  too  great  pub- 
lic concern,  and  it  involves  too  many  contingencies 
to  the  people  of  the  State  as  a  whole,  to  permit  this 
independence  of  initiative,  and  this  indifference  to 


136  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

the  public  good  and  to  the  rights  of  the  children  to 
continue  as  a  part  of  the  educational  system. 
Hence  the  State  must  take  a  hand  in  fostering 
enterprise  and  producing  conditions  whereby  it 
becomes  the  interest  and  the  desire  of  the  com- 
munities to  bring  educational  endeavor  up  to  the 
proper  standard  of  excellence  and  perfection.  To 
do  this  means  that  the  State  must  initiate  some 
system  of  co-operation  and  helpful  supervision 
whereby  there  will  be  more  local  expenditure, 
higher  educational  ideals,  and  more  positive  prog- 
ress. This  can  be  done  by  making  the  educational 
revenue  have  a  State  source,  as  well  as  a  local 
school-district  source,  and  requiring  certain  definite 
conditions  of  improvement  in  order  that  the  com- 
munity may  be  granted  the  revenue  derived  from 
the  State  source.  The  development  of  the  right 
spirit,  the  comprehending  of  the  greatness  of  the 
undertaking,  the  necessity  for  notable  talent  in 
the  teaching,  the  demand  for  better  quality  of  in- 
struction for  the  children  in  school — all  these,  and 
even  more,  can  be  secured  if  the  State  becomes  a 
real  force  in  educational  propaganda. 

The  Minimum  Standard. — Popular  demand  for 
teachers  of  any  standard,  without  regard  to  edu- 
cational preparation  and  fitness,  in  order  to  supply 
these  country  schools  with  teachers  authorized  to 
receive  public  money  for  their  services,  has  pro- 


THE  DEMONSTRATION  SCHOOLS  137 

duced  laws  that  permit  the  issuing  of  Hcenses 
to  persons  whose  quahfications  are  too  limited  to 
give  proper  results.  There  can  never  be  a  better 
country  school  until  there  is  actual  provision  for 
a  truly  competent  and  scholarly  teacher  as  well 
as  such  supervision  as  will  prevent  any  but  the 
most  effective  from  holding  such  positions  of  trust 
and  honor.  The  State  could  put  an  end  to  this 
by  enforcing  a  better  standard  wherever  the  State 
funds  are  granted  as  a  subsidy  and  thus  help  these 
local  communities  to  help  themselves. 

Demonstration. — It  is  not  to  be  expected  that 
every  school  district  would  at  once  co-operate  with 
the  State  in  introducing  the  new  plan.  There 
would  be  doubts  concerning  the  practicability  and 
the  success  of  the  undertaking  in  many  localities, 
and  it  would  be  necessary  to  show  by  actual  demon- 
stration that  a  better  course  of  study,  a  better 
teacher,  and  a  better  opportunity  are  worth  the 
while.  This  situation  requires  that  certain  demon- 
stration schools  be  organized  and  maintained  in 
each  county,  such  localities  being  selected  as  are 
the  most  aggressive,  the  most  enterprising,  and 
the  most  ambitious  for  improvement  in  educa- 
tional endeavor.  When  the  demonstration  has 
been  made,  when  the  results  are  shown,  when  the 
masses  are  satisfied,  then  there  will  be  a  local  will- 
ingness to  undertake  a  higher  standard  and   to 


138  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

have  a  more  efficient  school.  There  is  still  another 
problem  that  must  be  recognized.  The  number  of 
teachers  that  are  now  prepared  to  undertake 
these  greater  things  successfully  is  quite  limited. 
Agriculture,  home  economics,  and  other  modern 
studies  can  find  a  place  in  the  schools  only  by  an 
actual  acceptance  that  has  been  secured  by  demon- 
stration and  success.  Without  proper  teachers, 
without  right  modifications  of  the  course  of  study, 
without  careful  inspection  and  supervision,  even 
the  best  scheme  would  fail  of  being  proved  as 
either  beneficial  or  desirable. 


XXI 

CO-OPERATION 

The  Weakness  of  Isolation. — The  most  difficult 
thing  for  country  school  districts  to  learn  is  the 
importance  of  the  principle  of  co-operation.  This 
is  due  to  the  fact  that  in  almost  all  respects  they 
are  independent  as  a  unit  and  have  learned  to  de- 
pend upon  themselves  in  everything  that  touches 
the  life  and  the  business  of  their  people.  The  Hfe 
of  the  farmer  is  equally  isolated  and  independ- 
ent. He  relies  upon  no  one  in  particular  as  long  as 
he  remains  out  of  debt.  He  is  under  obligation  to 
no  one  for  his  prosperity,  his  success,  or  his  effi- 
ciency. This  very  independence  gives  him  a  valu- 
able self-reliance  that  is  worth  much  to  his  home, 
his  vocation,  and  his  career,  but  it  also  gives  him 
a  self-assurance  in  regard  to  public  policies  and 
public  endeavors  that  is  a  weakness  rather  than 
strength  and  that  may  betray  ignorance  rather 
than  intelligence.  This  self-assurance  may  lead 
him  to  think  that  he  is  more  capable  in  conducting 
educational  affairs  than  the  expert,  educated  man, 
and  that,  in  fact,  such  matters  as  carrying  out 

139 


140  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

school  plans  can  be  readily  and  successfully  accom- 
plished by  laymen.  It  is  extremely  difficult  for 
those  in  country  Hfe  to  realize  their  limitations  or 
to  recognize  that  there  are  disadvantages  as  well 
as  advantages  in  an  independent  environment. 

The  Results  of  Isolation. — There  are  other  ev- 
idences of  these  limitations  in  the  pity  that  a 
farmer  usually  feels  for  his  city  acquaintances  and 
the  contempt  that  he  frequently  has  for  their  man- 
ner of  life,  their  good  clothing,  and  their  manners. 
He  commonly  assumes  that  these  things  are  evi- 
dences of  affectation,  stilted  pride,  or  ignorant 
poverty  rather  than  the  genuine  expression  of 
culture  or  character-training.  He  speaks  dispar- 
agingly of  the  grasping  spirit  shown  in  business 
life,  of  the  sparseness  of  the  food  served  on  city 
tables  at  meals,  and  of  the  supreme  appreciation 
that  city  people  exhibit  as  regards  town  and  city 
life  and  town  and  city  customs.  In  all  this  he  is 
in  some  respects  right  and  in  other  respects  wrong. 
He  is  wrong  when  he  thinks  that  people  who  live 
in  the  city  or  town  prefer  the  life  they  follow 
because  of  its  ease,  its  short  hours,  its  lack  of 
sacrifices,  and  its  clean  occupations.  He  fails  to 
recognize  that  men  follow  certain  occupations 
because  of  their  individual  quaUfications,  their 
interest  in  certain  kinds  of  activities,  and  their 
particular  capability  to  do  well  the  things  they 


CO-OPERATION  141 

undertake  to  do.  He  is  right  when  he  thinks  that 
such  people  do  not  know  much  about  the  problems 
and  the  responsibilities  of  farming,  and  may  not 
be  able  to  appreciate  the  intelligence  demanded, 
the  skill  needed,  or  the  wisdom  expended,  in 
leading  a  successful  agricultural  life.  These  mis- 
understandings are  mutual,  as  both  sides  to  the 
discussion  have  much  to  learn  and  much  to  realize 
before  they  fully  recognize  the  privileges  that  an 
environment  can  confer. 

The  Country  and  the  Town. — There  are  native 
differences  between  the  people  of  the  country  and 
of  the  town  that  have  largely  come  from  the  in- 
fluences of  environment.  The  life  in  the  city  or 
the  town  is  made  up  of  so  many  occupations,  is 
composed  of  so  many  varied  experiences,  is  de- 
veloped by  so  many  relations  of  dependence,  that 
co-operation  and  exchange  of  ideas  and  notions 
become  a  necessity.  This  very  compulsory  con- 
dition of  co-operation  gives  a  breadth  of  view  and 
an  expansion  of  interest  that  secures  the  con- 
ducting of  public  affairs  on  a  broader  scope  and 
with  a  deeper  purpose  than  would  otherwise  be 
done.  It  is  not  the  carpenters  alone  that  make 
the  people  of  a  town,  nor  the  merchants  alone,  nor 
the  manufacturers  alone,  nor  the  professional  men 
alone.  These  and  many  other  persons  following 
diverse  industries  and  occupations  make  up  the 


142  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

life,  the  needs,  and  the  wishes  of  the  community. 
Hence  government  receives  more  attention  and 
makes  more  expenditure  in  proportion  to  wealth 
in  the  city  than  in  the  country.  Compare  city 
street  improvements  with  country  road  improve- 
ments, city  lawns  and  parks  with  equivalent  coun- 
try endeavors,  city  homes  with  country  homes,  and 
it  will  be  found  that  mixed  occupations  produce 
more  discrimination  as  to  taste  and  as  to  stand- 
ards of  pubHc  policy  because  of  comparison  and 
competition.  For  the  same  reason  the  schools  of 
the  cities  and  towns  surpass  those  of  the  country. 
Their  better  school-houses,  better  equipment,  bet- 
ter salaries  to  teachers,  their  sending  their  children 
to  school  more  months  in  the  year  or  more  years 
in  the  course  are  not  due  to  having  more  money, 
comparatively  speaking,  or  more  need  of  educa- 
tional training,  but  to  having  learned  the  principle 
of  co-operation,  and  to  applying  it  to  the  securing 
of  aims  and  objects  that  could  not  otherwise  be 
attained.  Their  lack  of  independence,  their  need 
to  depend  upon  the  help  of  others  for  their  suc- 
cess, their  desire  to  attract  business  and  trade  to 
build  up  their  prosperity,  their  application  to  the 
working  out  of  endeavors  that  indicate  progress 
and  improvement — are  all  consequences  of  the 
spirit  of  co-operation  rather  than  of  greater  intel- 
ligence, efficiency,  or  capabihty. 


CO-OPERATION  143 

Educational  Progress. — The  country  school  is 
what  it  is  because  of  its  isolation  and  because  it  is 
patronized  by  people  of  one  occupation  alone  and 
because  these  people  do  not  feel  seriously  the  need 
of  a  progress  and  of  an  improvement  that  they 
would  plainly  recognize  if  they  were  in  daily  con- 
tact with  people  of  entirely  different  occupations 
and  ideals.  The  country  school  will  become  what 
it  is  able  to  become  in  all  its  greatness  and  its 
usefulness  whenever  the  theory  of  isolation  is 
abandoned  and  a  theory  of  co-operation  is  adopted. 
It  can  become  even  better  than  the  city  school 
when  the  country  people  fully  realize  that  there 
is  more  reason  for  their  life  to  be  richer  in  intel- 
lectual and  social  opportunities  than  is  the  life  of 
the  dweller  in  the  city  or  the  town.  Educational 
progress  depends,  therefore,  more  upon  a  change 
of  attitude,  upon  a  broadening  of  experience,  and 
upon  an  enlargement  of  the  prospects  of  the  in- 
dividual rather  than  on  legislation,  supervision, 
or  inspection.  This  truth  is  shown  in  the  success 
of  the  boys  and  girls  of  the  country  who  leave 
their  environment, 'take  advantage  of  an  improved 
education  and  training,  and  enter  upon  activities 
that  demand  the  highest  judgment,  the  broadest 
scholarship,  and  the  greatest  strength.  They  do 
not  stand  second  to  those  born  in  the  city  in  polit- 
ical, professional,  or  business  life,  as  their  biogra- 


144  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

phies  plainly  show.  This  is  largely  due  to  their 
physique  and  to  the  intense  training  that  they  had 
upon  the  farm,  to  their  capability  as  workers,  and 
to  their  surplus  energy. 

The  Larger  Unit. — This  condition  makes  a  larger 
unit  than  the  local  country  school  district  an  ab- 
solute essential,  if  co-operation  is  to  have  a  fair 
chance  in  training  and  developing  the  model  Amer- 
ican citizen.  There  must  be  a  getting  away  from 
provincialism  and  from  separateness  of  life  and 
from  isolated  experience  in  training,  if  there  is  not 
finally  to  appear  in  America  the  peasant  class  and 
the  patrician  class — a  country-bred  man  and  a 
city-bred  man — a  condition  of  civilization  that 
will  repeat  the  experiences  of  the  nations  of  Europe 
and  of  Asia.  The  larger  this  school  unit  can  ser- 
viceably  be,  the  more  it  will  bring  together  the 
people  of  all  occupations  and  all  experiences;  the 
greater  the  opportunity  for  the  children  of  the 
country  and  of  the  city  to  sit  together  in  the  same 
school-room  and  meet  in  competition  on  the  same 
playground,  the  more  they  will  be  able  to  measure 
capability  and  application;  the  broader  and  more 
general  the  knowledge  obtained  by  the  instruction 
in  agriculture,  the  mechanical  arts,  and  the  gen- 
erally accepted  course  of  study  for  all,  the  more 
will  appreciation  of  manhood  grow  and  the  more 
valuable  will  be  the  education  obtained.    Only  by 


CO-OPERATION  145 

enlargement  of  the  unit  of  organization,  so  as  to 
combine  the  efficiencies  of  town  and  country- 
through  all  classes  of  workers  in  these  great  move- 
ments in  civilization,  can  the  higher  educational 
results  be  realized. 

The  Modern  Slogan. — The  key  to  all  advance- 
ment in  industry,  in  professional  careers,  in  church, 
in  state,  and  in  school  is  expressed  by  the  single 
word  co-operation.  The  farmer  needs  toco-operate 
with  men  in  other  callings  even  to  get  to  be  a  prom- 
inent and  useful  citizen  himself;  he  needs  to  feel 
his  dependence  upon  the  handmaids  of  civiliza- 
tion, the  church,  the  school,  and  government,  in 
order  to  realize  fully  his  own  importance  as  a 
factor  in  progress  and  success;  he  must  give  time 
and  money  and  energy  to  the  work  that  has  to  be 
done  for  the  common  good,  in  order  to  have  the 
full  benefits  of  prosperity  for  himself  and  for  his 
family;  and,  finally,  he  must  recognize  his  place 
as  a  maker  and  developer  of  civilization's  best  aims 
and  objects,  recognizing  that  all  these  great  things 
are  absolutely  impossible  in  this  great  country 
unless  he  makes  his  full  contribution  as  a  worker 
and  as  a  citizen. 


XXII 

THE   PROPER  UNIT  IN  SCHOOL  ORGANIZATION 

The  Purposes. — What  makes  the  proper  unit  in 
school  organization  depends  upon  the  purpose  the 
unit  selected  is  to  serve  and  not  upon  any  other 
reason.  There  is  a  unit  that  is  determined  by  the 
convenience  of  attendance,  another  unit  that  de- 
pends upon  the  sufficiency  of  financial  support 
that  can  be  guaranteed,  another  unit  that  impHes 
that  there  can  be  sufficient  patronage  to  guaran- 
tee economy  of  cost  of  maintenance,  and,  finally, 
another  unit  that  is  regulated  by  the  need  of  effi- 
ciency of  administration  and  supervision.  All  these 
elements  in  school  organization  need  to  be  com- 
prehended and  to  be  reahzed  if  the  undertaking  is 
to  rank  as  a  creditable  success. 

Too  many  country  schools  have  the  unit  of  con- 
venience of  attendance,  but  are  entirely  lacking  in 
financial  support,  sufficient  patronage,  and  ade- 
quate supervision.  This  is  a  condition  that  pre- 
vents efficiency  and  economy,  and  gives  in  return 
no  adequate  results  for  the  investments  made. 

The  Officers. — The  smaller  and  less  important 
the  country  school  district,  the  more  its  organiza- 

146 


THE  PROPER  UNIT  IN  ORGANIZATION    147 

tion  is  decided  by  the  matter  of  convenience  alone, 
the  larger  the  number  of  officials  that  are  required 
to  conduct  and  organize  these  schools.  Here  is 
found  a  territory  two  or  three  miles  square  with 
three  school  directors,  a  secretary,  and  a  treasurer 
to  maintain  the  organization,  select  the  one  teacher, 
purchase  the  fuel  and  supplies  for  one  room,  keep 
up  the  repairs,  buy  the  equipment,  visit  the  school, 
maintain  legal  discipline,  and  pay  the  teacher  for 
her  services.  Frequently  there  are  more  school 
officials  than  there  are  pupils  in  regular  attendance, 
and  there  is  more  difficulty  in  getting  the  legal  busi- 
ness properly  transacted  than  is  true  in  any  other 
kind  of  public  affairs.  On  the  face  of  things  this 
over-organization  is  ridiculous  and  useless,  as  it 
contributes  nothing  to  the  excellence  of  the  schools 
and  actually  prevents  the  necessary  work  from  be- 
ing done.  This  plan  is  popular  because  it  gives 
so  many  electors  an  office  and  because  it  shows 
that  local  men  are  capable  of  conducting  all  the 
local  business. 

The  Taxing  Unit. — Possibly  from  a  scientific  and 
economic  point  of  view  the  taxing  unit  is  the  more 
important  problem  to  be  solved,  as  on  this,  after 
all,  depend  the  real  possibiHties  of  success  or  fail- 
ure. Many  present-day  tax  units  are  incapable 
or  unwilling  to  raise  enough  money  to  make  an 
efficient  school  an  actual  possibllit}'.    The  country 


148  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

school  is  often  doomed  to  helplessness,  uselessness, 
and  extravagance  because  the  salary  is  too  small 
to  provide  a  competent  teacher.  No  genuinely 
competent,  self-respecting  teacher  can  afford  to 
accept  employment  at  too  low  a  rate  of  remunera- 
tion. To-day  the  small  country  school  districts 
could  have  pronounced  success  if  they  were  in- 
creased in  size  until  there  was  a  full  number  of 
pupils  in  each  school  for  each  teacher  employed. 
Such  a  combination  would  take  the  total  amount 
of  money  they  now  raise  for  support  and  give  it 
to  fewer  teachers  of  better  qualifications  and  ex- 
perience. In  many  respects  the  best  taxing  unit 
is  the  county,  as  such  an  area  of  territory  would 
give  adequate  financial  support  for  the  mainte- 
nance of  all  the  schools  that  the  school  popula- 
tion needs  and  at  the  same  time  do  the  work  re- 
quired in  a  most  economical  way. 

The  Supervising  Unit. — Inspection,  supervision, 
and  expert  management  are  absolutely  essential 
in  any  work  as  complex  and  difficult  as  is  public 
education.  The  value  of  expertness  of  direction  is 
appreciated  by  every  enterprise  that  has  its  activ- 
ities scattered  and  accomplished  by  many  persons. 
Supervision  is  an  actual  necessity  to  a  properly 
managed  business,  and  without  it  there  is  waste, 
extravagance,  disaster,  and  failure,  since  incompe- 
tence and  disorganization  will  predominate  where 


THE  PROPER  UNIT  IN  ORGANIZATION    H9 

not  avoided  and  prevented.  Supervision  of  schools 
is  impossible  unless  it  includes  a  reasonable  terri- 
tory and  provides  opportunity  for  frequent  and 
sympathetic  contact  with  pupils  and  teachers.  The 
right  supervising  unit  depends,  therefore,  upon  the 
amount  of  work  to  be  done,  upon  the  number  of 
teachers  and  pupils  that  are  to  be  encouraged  and 
assisted,  upon  the  variety  and  kind  of  services  and 
activities  that  are  assigned.  The  more  that  is  ex- 
pected, the  more  that  is  authorized,  the  more  that 
is  permitted,  the  smaller  must  be  the  mileage  to 
be  travelled  and  the  number  of  schools  to  be  su- 
pervised. The  county  unit  in  supervision  is  not 
a  possibility,  provided  one  superintendent  is  as- 
signed the  task  of  assisting  the  teachers  and  im- 
proving the  schools.  The  township  unit  is  not 
large  enough  to  give  opportunity  for  the  best  per- 
sons to  be  appointed  as  superintendents.  The 
only  way  to  decide  such  a  problem  is  to  use  good 
judgment  and  make  these  units  conform  to  what 
judgment  and  reason  dictate. 

The  Community  Unit. — What  constitutes  a 
proper  community  unit  depends  upon  the  privi- 
leges that  exist  in  organization  to  bring  a  group 
of  people  together  systematically  and  secure  the 
right  use  of  friendly  co-operation.  When  this  limit 
has  been  determined,  then  the  patronage  of  a 
single  elementary  school  is  a  known  quantity  and 


150  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

a  school-house  can  be  satisfactorily  located  to 
supply  proper  facilities  for  the  great  variety  of 
community  activities  and  needs.  When  public 
roads  are  improved  and  transportation  is  made 
easier  and  quicker,  then  the  possible  area  of  a  com- 
munity unit  expands.  If  walking  is  the  form  of 
transportation  that  must  be  used  to  assemble  the 
pupils  and  the  people,  then  the  community  is  small 
indeed.  When  wagons  and  carriages  become  com- 
mon conveyances  the  boundaries  of  a  community 
proportionately  increase.  When  automobiles  and 
conveyances  of  a  more  rapid  kind  become  com- 
mon the  community  unit  can  be  very  large  indeed. 
It  must  be  recognized  that  the  advent  of  the  trol- 
ley-car and  the  automobile  has  changed  decidedly 
the  size  of  the  community  unit  for  large  portions 
of  the  United  States,  and  as  a  consequence  their 
school  problems  are  to  be  best  solved  on  a  similar 
scale  of  management  and  policy. 

The  Fundamental  Situation. — It  is  evident  to 
any  student  of  the  country-school  problem  that 
its  solution  depends  very  largely  upon  coming  to 
a  sensible,  business  adjustment  of  the  whole  ques- 
tion of  practicable  and  serviceable  units  for  the 
various  business  relations  that  need  to  be  con- 
ducted. There  is  no  necessity  for  these  units  to 
be  organized  on  a  compromise  basis  by  assum- 
ing that  the  best  unit  for  all  will  be  one  in  which 


THE  PROPER  UNIT  IN  ORGANIZATION     151 

the  boundaries  of  the  community  unit,  the  super- 
vising unit,  and  the  taxing  unit  must  be  one  and 
the  same.  The  work  of  levying  taxes,  of  distrib- 
uting money  for  the  support  of  the  schools,  of  em- 
ploying teachers,  and  of  directing  the  work  in  prog- 
ress does  not  need  to  be  managed  by  an  identical 
set  of  officials.  In  fact  there  are  good  reasons  for 
thinking  that  it  would  be  better  and  more  certain 
as  to  efficiency  if  there  were  a  division  of  labor  and 
of  authority  in  regard  to  these  highly  important 
transactions.  In  doing  this  the  province  of  the 
teacher,  of  the  superintendent,  of  the  local  board 
of  directors,  and  of  the  officers  of  each  unit  pro- 
vided could  be  greatly  enlarged  and  responsibilit}^ 
could  be  placed  without  any  detriment  to  the 
tax-payers  or  to  the  schools.  These  functions  of 
government  are  widely  different;  these  factors  in 
educational  progress  are  decidedly  prominent  and 
important,  while  the  working  out  of  the  relations 
of  service  and  of  endeavor  will  complete  the  re- 
quirements of  the  present  age.  Without  this  ap- 
propriate solution  all  is  chaos,  all  is  extravagance, 
and  all  is  weakness  and  incapability. 


XXIII 

STANDARDIZATION 

The  Sentiment. — There  Is  no  more  dominant 
sentiment  among  present-day  educators  than  that 
for  the  desirability  and  the  possibility  of  the  stand- 
ardization of  schools.  This  has  come  from  an  at- 
tempt to  determine  the  quality  and  the  quantity 
of  work  to  such  an  exact  degree  that  educational 
endeavor  may  be  so  unified  that  a  pupil  may  be 
able  to  pass  from  the  lowest  to  the  highest  grade 
of  public-school  work  in  a  systematic  and  satis- 
factory way  without  loss  of  time  or  effort.  Defini- 
tions of  everything  connected  with  schools  have 
been  attempted,  the  scope  of  the  application  of  the 
definitions  has  been  prescribed,  while  the  province 
and  the  purpose  of  education  of  all  kinds  have 
been  designated  and  outlined.  These  notions  are 
largely  formal  and  sometimes  inconsequential,  yet 
they  have  been  treated  as  fundamental  and  vital, 
being  given  attention  far  beyond  any  possible 
results  that  they  can  secure.  The  sentiment  origi- 
nated in  an  attempt  to  fill  in  the  gap  that  existed 
between  the  common  public  school  and  the  col- 
lege.   So  long  as  the  academy  was  the  fitting  school 

152 


STANDARDIZATION  153 

for  the  college,  this  kind  of  secondary  school  had 
its  standards  determined  by  the  requirements  of 
the  college,  but  when  the  public  secondary  school 
was  founded  the  public  demand  did  not  feel  satis- 
fied with  the  fitting  school  as  an  end,  and  hence 
public  secondary  education  became  identified  with 
many  other  aims  and  purposes  and  the  problem 
of  standardization  became  imperative.  The  ex- 
act kind  of  scholarship  needed  for  college  en- 
trance became  the  question  of  college  faculties, 
and  the  exact  limits  of  education  to  be  given  in 
the  regular  popular  branches  was  approximately 
determined. 

The  Lower  Grades. — When  the  high  school  had 
been  reasonably  standardized  according  to  the 
limits  prescribed,  it  was  found  that  it  was  still 
necessary  to  organize  and  determine  the  limits  of 
the  so-called  grammar  grades  so  that  the  high 
school  could  have  properly  prepared  entrance  pu- 
pils for  the  work  assigned.  Likewise  the  primary 
grades  were  classified  and  planned  and  organ- 
ized until  they  were  also  standardized  and  uni- 
fied by  such  systematic  courses  that  a  balanced 
education  seemed  unable  to  be  avoided.  This 
same  scheme  of  planning  courses  of  study  has  pre- 
vailed in  the  colleges,  in  the  universities,  and  in 
the  professional  schools  to  such  an  extent  that 
the  very  day,  and  even  the  very  hour,  of  the  in- 


154  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

struction  in  all  varieties  of  school  work  has  been 
determined  and  designated  with  special  exactness. 
In  some  respects  these  conditions  have  been  ac- 
cepted by  custom  and  put  into  force.  In  other 
respects  statutes  have  been  passed  by  legislatures 
and  a  fixed  status  of  systematic  education  has  been 
decreed. 

The  Country  School. — Amid  all  this  commotion 
of  developing  and  determining  systems,  methods, 
and  plans  of  conducting  schools  in  towns  and 
cities,  as  well  as  in  colleges  and  universities,  it 
has  been  impossible  to  standardize  the  country 
school.  In  these  schools  the  teacher  has  been 
the  authority  that  determined  the  course  of  study, 
that  assigned  the  work  to  be  prepared,  that  de- 
cided when  the  work  had  been  completed,  and 
even  when  a  new  study  should  be  begun,  or  when 
any  portion  of  it  was  so  satisfactorily  mastered  as 
to  permit  the  next  kind  of  work  to  be  undertaken. 
When  the  teacher  did  not  properly  manage  the  pro- 
motion and  transfer  the  pupils  from  class  to  class 
as  the  parents  deemed  desirable  or  satisfactory, 
then  the  parents  solved  the  problem  by  their  own 
standards,  purchased  new  books  for  the  children, 
and  decided  that  promotion  had  taken  place.  The 
impression  might  be  obtained  by  the  careless  ob- 
server that  this  kind  of  school  management  was 
extremely  faulty  and  that  it  could  not  make  for 


STANDARDIZATION  155 

the  real  progress  of  the  pupils,  yet  investigation 
will  show  that  good  judgment  usually  prevailed, 
that  a  prudent,  conservative  policy  generally  dom- 
inated the  action,  and  that  promotion  and  transfer 
were  not  the  hidden  indeterminate  chaotic  prob- 
lems that  certain  leaders  in  a  community  might 
think. 

The  Teacher  as  a  Force. — It  is  a  prominent  fact 
that  the  teacher  in  such  a  situation  is  a  mighty 
force  in  a  country  school  and  that  the  capability 
and  the  efficiency  possessed  are  able  to  bring  more 
definite  results  in  a  short  time  than  any  of  the 
highly  organized  and  standardized  systems  can 
show.  In  the  country  school  it  is  not  necessary  to 
wait  for  the  semester  time  to  come  around  to  take 
a  new  step  in  the  line  of  progress;  it  is  not  neces- 
sary to  mark  time  and  supplement  work  to  pre- 
vent the  arrival  at  a  station  of  accomplishment 
before  the  calendar  designates  the  time  that  the 
sun  crosses  the  equator;  it  is  not  necessary  to 
keep  every  subject  of  study  so  abreast  with  every 
other  subject  of  study  that  the  paper  curriculum 
could  be  justified  for  its  existence.  The  freedom 
of  the  teacher,  the  opportunity  to  do  the  best  pos- 
sible all  the  time,  the  privilege  of  taking  advan- 
tage of  interest  and  enthusiasm  and  thus  push 
forward  to  immediate  success — these  are  the  op- 
portunities of  the  country  teacher  that  can  make 


156  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

efficiency  reasonably  certain  and  success  an  actual 
realization.  It  is  for  such  reasons  as  this  that  the 
teacher  must  be  the  main  consideration,  that  his 
quahfications  and  spirit  and  adaptabihty  must  be 
given  great  weight,  in  order  that  the  prospects  of 
the  country  school  may  not  be  taken  away  by  in- 
difference or  neglect.  Almost  everything  depends 
upon  the  resourcefulness  of  the  teacher,  upon  the 
quality  of  his  character,  upon  his  appreciation  of 
the  children  and  of  their  future  development,  and 
upon  the  growth  they  must  show  through  the  in- 
struction and  training  they  receive. 

The  Other  Side. — There  is  another  side  to  this 
question  that  is  highly  important  in  an  economical 
and  business  sense  that  must  not  be  overlooked. 
It  must  be  conceded  that  there  is  large  necessity 
for  a  reasonable  and  considerate  standardization 
of  the  country  school.  Some  things  that  are  useful 
and  some  things  that  are  useless  are  found  in 
instruction.  These  must  be  differentiated  and 
the  valuable  conserved.  There  is  no  time  that 
can  be  wisely  given  for  the  learning  of  any 
alleged  knowledge  that  does  not  possess  real  and 
helpful  value.  Almost  every  study  that  is  found 
in  the  country  school  is  too  much  controlled  by 
tradition  and  custom.  Almost  every  one  is  loaded 
with  information  and  work  that  could  be  omitted 
from    the    assignment    made    to   pupils    without 


STANDARDIZATION  157 

any  loss  to  the  pupil's  efficiency  or  scholarship. 
Almost  every  one  is  lacking  in  modern  applica- 
tions or  definite  practicality.  All  the  essential 
elements  of  education  should  be  standardized  and 
systematized.  The  text-books  should  be  reduced 
to  the  real  and  the  practical;  the  useful  and  the 
developing  should  be  permitted  even  when  not 
found  in  the  books  that  are  in  use,  while  the  true 
and  the  necessary  should  dominate  all  management 
and  all  instruction. 

The  Present  Need. — That  this  standardization 
should  be  secured,  and  that  it  should  be  brought 
about  by  the  most  comprehensive  minds  of  the 
present  age,  ought  to  be  accepted  as  a  fact.  That 
such  a  right  solution  would  be  an  untold  blessing 
to  every  country  school  the  wise  and  the  intelli- 
gent already  know.  That  it  is  no  small  problem  to 
accomplish  every  intelligent  individual  who  has 
thought  about  it  recognizes.  That  the  progress 
of  this  practical  age  awaits  the  solution  of  the 
greater  problem,  while  its  day  of  accomplishment 
is  postponed  for  the  easier  and  more  attractive 
tasks  of  legislation  and  supervision,  is  a  true  condi- 
tion in  every  part  of  national  and  State  adminis- 
tration of  education  as  existing  to-day. 

Much  of  this  difficulty  is  due  to  mistaken  con- 
ceptions of  what  education  is  doing  and  what  edu- 
cation  should    undertake   to   do   as   held    by    the 


158  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

masses  of  the  people.  They  commonly  think  of 
school  work  as  having  a  special  money  value  to  its 
possessor  rather  than  a  special  personal  value  to 
the  individual  success  of  him  who  gains  it.  They 
sacrifice  for  their  children,  under  the  impression 
that  the  knowledge  thus  obtained  will  count  for 
much  in  the  years  to  come  and  will  insure  them 
power,  peace,  and  plenty.  Even  educators  them- 
selves put  trust  in  the  years  given  to  study  rather 
than  in  the  actual  mental  accomplishments  ob- 
tained by  study;  they  accept  more  the  philosophy 
of  complete  training  than  they  do  the  reality  of 
complete  training;  they  urge  the  competency  of 
formal  knowledge  and  formal  discipline  over  and 
beyond  the  competency  of  useful  knowledge  and 
effective  discipline.  Too  often  they  ridicule  the 
idea  of  actual  efficiency  in  personality  and  in  char- 
acter, forgetting  that  it  is  the  doing  of  things,  the 
thinking  of  things,  and  the  developing  of  things 
that  has  made  progress  actual  and  an  improved 
civilization  possible.  Education  to  be  genuine  and 
complete  in  results  should  not  be  purely  cultural 
and  speculative,  even  if  such  a  plan  is  com- 
mended by  notable  scholars,  since  it  is  equally 
essential  that  mankind  be  strong  in  the  practical- 
ity and  the  adaptability  which  guarantees  food, 
shelter  and  clothing  to  the  human  family. 


XXIV 

THE  COURSE  OF  STUDY 

Fundamentals. — What  should  constitute  the 
proper  course  of  instruction  and  training  for  the 
growth  and  the  development  of  a  human  life  has 
been  the  great  problem  of  all  nations  that  have 
had  a  place  in  civilization.  These  fundamentals 
have  had  the  greatest  variation,  have  shown  the 
most  remarkable  results,  and  have  produced  special 
conditions  that  indicate  the  importance  of  the 
problem  to  the  twentieth  century.  Chinese  edu- 
cation was  noted  for  its  narrow  circle  of  ideas,  for 
its  perpetuation  of  fixed  customs,  for  its  encourage- 
ment of  outward  morality  and  ceremony,  and  for 
its  opposition  to  progress  and  change  of  every 
kind.  Hindoo  education  was  noted  for  its  aver- 
sion to  physical  exertion,  for  its  ideal  of  physical 
happiness  in  eating,  drinking,  and  sleeping,  for  its 
lack  of  a  conception  of  a  personal  God,  for  its  recog- 
nition of  religion  as  a  set  of  puerile  observances, 
and  for  its  limitation  of  development  to  the  caste  in 
which  the  individual  was  born.  Hebraic  education 
was  noted  for  its  nationality  of  type,  for  its  reli- 
ance upon  individual  development  as  distinguished 

159 


IGO  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

from  Instruction,  for  its  training  of  the  disposition, 
the  manners,  and  the  habits  through  both  thought 
and  feeling,  for  its  conception  of  the  rights,  duties, 
and  obhgations  of  the  individual  in  his  relation  to 
society,  and  for  its  acceptance  as  real  and  personal 
of  the  one  true  God,  Jehovah  of  Hosts.  Egyptian 
education  was  noted  for  its  superiority  in  practi- 
caHty,  for  the  utihtarian  tendency  of  its  culture, 
for  its  absorption  and  adoption  of  the  kinds  of 
knowledge  and  culture  that  were  found  in  other 
nations,  for  its  world-wide  character,  and  for  its 
attainment  in  the  mechanic  arts  and  agriculture. 
Greek  education  was  noted  for  its  admiration  for 
the  physical,  the  heroic,  the  artistic,  and  the 
aesthetic.  It  sought  supremacy  and  leadership 
through  philosophy,  government,  and  war.  It 
trained  the  intellect,  inspired  the  personality,  and 
developed  the  patriotism  of  the  race,  so  that  mu- 
tual improvement  was  secured  through  hearty 
friendship  and  profound  scientific  culture.  Ro- 
man education  was  noted  for  intense  practicality 
in  training  every  youth  for  a  definite  calling,  for 
success  in  agriculture,  arms,  politics,  law,  and 
oratory,  and  for  ambition  to  accumulate  wealth 
and  to  acquire  power.  The  art  of  war  was  learned 
in  the  field;  politics,  law,  and  oratory  were  learned 
in  the  forum,  courts,  and  senate;  while  eloquence 
was  acquired  by  the  most  diligent  effort  and  the 


THE  COURSE  OF  STUDY  161 

most  assiduous  training.  American  education  is 
noted  for  its  scientific  basis,  for  its  experimental 
and  investigating  character,  for  its  manifold  types 
of  undertaking,  for  its  conception  of  the  impor- 
tance of  citizenship  and  efficiency,  for  its  unlver- 
saHty  and  its  philanthropic  management,  for  its 
popularity  and  its  accepted  adequacy,  and  for  its 
notion  of  harmonious  development  whereby  the 
physical,  mental,  and  moral  character  of  the  child 
should  be  fully  developed.  The  Interest  in  edu- 
cation that  exists  ever3^where  in  the  United  States, 
the  enthusiasm  that  is  always  manifest  as  regards 
its  necessity  and  its  great  value,  the  Investments 
that  are  made  to  have  its  benefits  reach  all  of  the 
people  without  regard  to  their  financial  standing 
or  prospects,  are  manifestations  of  possibilities  of 
progress  that  are  marvellous  Indeed. 

The  Country  School. — With  the  conceptions  of 
the  fundamentals  that  are  found  in  the  motives 
and  the  purposes  of  modern  elementary  education, 
there  can  exist  no  negative  status  for  the  country 
school.  It  is  an  educational  institution  that  is 
founded  and  organized  and  conducted  to  communi- 
cate the  fundamental  knowledge  and  the  thorough 
training  that  this  present  age  accepts  as  essential 
to  the  welfare  of  the  race.  It  is  a  limited  institu- 
tion, because  it  deals  with  the  child  during  the  im- 
mature and  untrained  time  of  its  life  and  because 


162  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

even  these  years  are  few  and  difficult  to  use  or 
to  control  on  account  of  the  many  natural  and 
unappreciated  interferences  that  are  constantly 
preventing  results.  The  function  of  the  country 
school  is  a  broad  one  if  its  intentions  are  actually 
realized,  but  it  commonly  becomes  a  narrow  one 
because  of  restricted  environment,  physical  im- 
possibilities, and  decided  hindrances  that  business 
interests  and  vocational  prejudices  allow  to  exist. 
The  reaching  of  complete  ideals,  the  appreciating 
of  the  notable  possibihties  of  culture  and  training, 
the  true  valuation  of  citizenship  and  business  ca- 
pacity, the  importance  of  industrial  Hfe  to  civiliza- 
tion, and  the  grandeur  and  efficiency  of  a  well- 
trained  character  for  all  without  distinction  are 
conditions  that  are  yet  only  partially  realized  in 
the  country  school's  perfection  and  expansion. 

The  Programme  of  Studies. — Custom  has  made 
a  certain  curriculum  almost  universal.  There  are 
good  reasons  for  this  common  agreement  since  the 
programme  of  studies  taught  must  conform  to  the 
fundamental  knowledge  that  civiUzation  decides  is 
essential  to  the  practical  training  of  the  individual. 
It  is  to  be  recognized  that  every  kind  of  civiliza- 
tion has  had  its  peculiarities  and  its  special  require- 
ments, and  that  the  changes  or  improvements  that 
have  appeared  in  such  civilization  have  been  re- 
flected   in   the   courses   of  study    offered   in   the 


THE  COURSE  OF  STUDY  163 

schools.  Educational  organization  and  manage- 
ment arc  always  conformable  to  the  standards, 
ideals,  and  ambitions  of  the  times  they  serve. 
In  the  same  way,  the  present-day  course  of  study 
found  in  the  American  schools  is  a  consequence  of 
the  real  public  needs  that  the  masses  who  support 
and  patronize  the  schools  feel  to  be  important. 
No  branch  of  study  can  have  any  patronage  un- 
less it  is  desired  as  knowledge  by  those  who  enroll 
in  such  schools,  and  hence  the  modifications  that 
appear  are  only  those  that  originate  in  public  de- 
mand. The  country  school  makes  a  special  place 
on  its  programme  of  studies  for  certain  branches 
of  learning  because  of  their  universal  acceptance 
by  the  masses.  These  are  English  language  (read- 
ing, spelling,  penmanship,  literature,  grammar, 
and  composition),  arithmetic,  geography,  history, 
physiology,  hygiene,  and  vocal  music.  The  only 
differences  that  exist  concerning  these  studies  as 
suitable  for  elementary  education  are  included  in 
such  considerations  as  the  scope,  the  time  of  as- 
signment, and  the  quantity  and  quality  of  subject 
matter  that  each  should  occupy.  Some  of  them 
are  given  extraordinary  prominence  because  of 
their  popularity  and  the  assumption  that  their  in- 
formation guarantees  special  personal  capability; 
some  of  them  are  denied  the  attention  which  their 
training  deserves  because  they  are  so  largely  de- 


164  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

pendent  upon  the  gifts  and  the  qualities  of  the 
teacher,  while  others  are  simply  given  a  place  be- 
cause of  their  conventional  and  appreciated  char- 
acter as  training  factors  of  a  mental  and  practical 
kind.  In  addition  to  these  fundamental  lines  of 
study,  there  is  a  growing  tendency  to  increase  the 
country-school  programme  by  attempting  to  give 
practical  elementary  instruction  in  one  or  more  of 
the  following  studies:  agriculture,  home  econom- 
ics (sewing  and  cooking),  manual  training,  physical 
training,  drawing,  and  nature  study  (plants,  ani- 
mals, and  natural  phenomena). 

The  Main  Problem. — The  chief  difficulty  that 
arises  in  the  work  assigned  the  country  school  is 
that  economic  conditions  seem  to  compel  that 
persons  be  employed  as  teachers  who  can  afford 
to  accept  the  small  incomes  that  are  obtainable 
by  the  system  as  legally  provided.  The  country 
school-teacher  has  a  province  that  demands  su- 
perior capability,  competency,  and  efficiency  in- 
stead of  limited  scholarship,  narrow  culture,  and 
meagre  experience.  The  branches  of  scholarship 
that  are  to  be  taught  have  special  value.  The 
knowledge  they  contain  demands  complete  mas- 
tery. The  training  they  give,  if  they  are  efficiently 
handled  and  studied,  cannot  be  considered  as  an 
inadequate  education.  In  these  fundamental  sub- 
jects are  found  the  kinds  of  preparation  that  are 


THE  COURSE  OF  STUDY  1G5 

essential  to  success  in  further  progress  in  educa- 
tion, that  give  a  practical  basis  for  a  business  life, 
and  that  equip  a  person  for  creditable  competency 
in  other  callings. 

The  First  in  Importance. — The  training  in  the 
use  of  the  English  language  is  the  first  result  to 
be  sought  in  the  maintenance  of  a  country  school. 
This  is  no  small  undertaking  for  the  pupil  or  for 
the  teacher.     The  difficulties  to  be  met  are  so  nu- 
merous and  so  indeterminate  that  many  times  it 
is  a  question  of  judgment  rather  than  a  question 
of  fact  as  to  what  should  be  done.     This  is  caused 
by  the  condition  in  which  a  living  language  like 
English  must  be  found.    There  is  much  that  is  in 
a  transition  state  and  that  has  changed  from  gen- 
eration to  generation.    English  is  not  standardized 
as  to  spelling,  as  to  pronunciation,  as  to  diction,  or 
as  to  application.    The  spelling  that  should  always 
be  preferred  by  the  school  is  that  form  which  is 
simplest  and  most  nearly  phonetic.     Every  diffi- 
culty that  can  be  eliminated  should  be  given  such 
treatment  without   hesitation,   because  every  ir- 
regularity should  be  rejected  by  the  teacher  as  not 
contributing  to  success  in  the  universal  education 
of  the  masses.     Then  the  pronunciation   that  is 
appropriate  differs  very  greatly  among  even  the 
well  educated.    This  is  due  to  the  fact  that  there 
are  many  minor  dialectic  distinctions  with  special 


166  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

characteristics  that  exist  in  different  parts  of  a 
country  and  sometimes  even  in  different  parts  of 
the  same  State.  The  dictionary  as  an  authority 
does  not  relieve  this  situation,  because  the  vowel 
sounds  are  frequently  quite  differently  pronounced 
by  the  experts  when  they  are  themselves  from  dif- 
ferent colleges  or  different  States.  The  diction- 
aries are  edited  to  give  word  precision  for  the 
standard  of  pronunciation.  Since  this  is  not  the 
standard  that  is  used  in  reading  and  speaking,  the 
teacher  is  obliged  to  depend  upon  his  own  knowl- 
edge and  training  in  determining  sentence  preci- 
sion— the  style  of  language  that  is  used  in  the 
schools. 

Formal  English. — In  like  manner,  English  gram- 
mar is  lacking  in  standardization.  Every  author 
of  a  text-book  in  grammar  uses  such  a  nomenclat- 
ure as  he  sees  fit.  This  makes  confusion  as  regards 
the  technical  terms  describing  the  tenses,  the  cases, 
the  parts  of  the  sentence,  and  many  other  charac- 
teristics that  make  teaching  English  grammar  spe- 
cially difficult.  Then  diction,  the  meaning  of 
words,  is  so  variable,  so  numerous  in  applications, 
and  so  different  in  usage  that  the  interpretation 
of  thought  is  a  profoundly  difficult  undertaking 
for  even  the  best  informed  and  the  more  widely 
read.  The  distinction  in  literature,  the  novelties 
in  prose  and   poetry,   the   many    meanings   that 


THE  COURSE  OF  STUDY  107 

words  can  convey — all  indicate  that  teaching  the 
mother  tongue  with  credit  and  with  accuracy  is 
not  to  be  expected  of  the  novice  or  the  uninformed. 
Practical  English. — Yet,  after  all,  the  element- 
ary school  must  stand  or  fall  on  its  ability  to  teach 
its  pupils  to  be  ready,  accurate  users  of  the  mother 
tongue.  On  this  depends  all  the  success  that  is 
to  be  secured  in  teaching  most  of  the  other  branches 
in  the  elementary  curriculum,  as  text-books  are  to 
be  studied,  verbal  instruction  is  to  be  given,  and 
written  exercises  are  to  be  prepared  to  comply 
with  the  methods  that  must  be  used  in  conducting 
a  modern  school.  Writing  English  does  not  pre- 
cede the  acquirement  of  readily  and  successfully 
using  oral  English.  Talking,  reading,  committing 
selections  to  memory,  reciting,  and  other  forms  of 
expression  are  preliminary  to  composition.  The 
obtaining  of  information,  the  making  of  observa- 
tions, the  comprehending  of  how  to  say  things 
properly,  the  competency  in  talking,  reading,  recit- 
ing, and  discussing  are  absolutely  essential  to  a 
reasonable  beginning  in  writing  English.  Before 
written  composition  should  be  undertaken  as  a 
task,  oral  composition  should  have  been  specially 
developed.  The  themes  that  are  to  be  treated  by 
description  should  be  very  completely  and  thor- 
oughly developed  and  expressed  in  oral  form  before 
any  success  should  be  expected  in  the  written  form. 


168  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

This  oral  composition  must  be  given  extraordinary 
attention.  Pupils  must  be  trained  to  present  their 
thoughts  in  a  consecutive,  deliberate,  perfected 
oral  composition,  in  order  to  be  trained  in  effective 
thinking  and  in  readiness  of  use  of  the  right  words 
in  the  right  relations  to  have  any  personal  fitness 
to  undertake  successful  written  composition. 

Rhetoric. — English  grammar  is  for  the  benefit 
of  the  critical  instinct  as  to  the  proper  use  of  words 
in  right  relationships;  Enghsh  rhetoric  is  likewise 
a  kind  of  study  that  gives  a  critical  basis  for  cor- 
rection and  improvement  of  composition.  Neither 
grammar  nor  rhetoric,  however  well  mastered,  will 
make  a  pupil  a  ready  talker  or  writer.  This  fact 
emphasizes  the  necessity  for  great  emphasis  upon 
the  reahties  of  English  instruction,  and  places  the 
main  requirement  as  to  education  and  literacy 
upon  the  proper  and  efficient  teaching  of  the  Eng- 
lish language.  When  this  is  really  done,  then  geog- 
raphy, history,  physiology,  and  all  other  informa- 
tion studies  become  a  joy  and  a  success  in  school 
work  because  the  mastery  of  the  language  gives 
opportunity  to  make  real  progress. 

Mathematics. — Arithmetic  has  a  province  in  ele- 
mentary education  and  training  that  is  all  its  own. 
It  calls  for  different  mental  activity  from  that  re- 
quired by  language,  and  In  Its  higher  and  problem 
forms  trains  the  judgment  and  the  reason.    It  has 


THE  COURSE  OF  STUDY  1()0 

also  a  language  of  its  own,  as  it  carries  the  means 
of  expressing  thinking  and  is  universal  in  its  char- 
acter, being  capable  of  being  taught  through  all 
the  leading  languages  of  the  age.  It  is  a  science  in 
that  it  is  governed  by  law  and  order  and  is  bound 
together  by  principles  and  intimate  relations  that 
give  much  breadth  and  depth  to  thought  and  en- 
able conclusions  to  be  reached  that  are  definite 
and  accurate.  It  is  valuable  in  its  concrete  as 
well  as  its  abstract  form,  and  develops  powers  of 
comparison,  of  investigation,  and  of  coming  to 
conclusions  that  mathematical  studies  alone  pos- 
sess. In  the  more  primary  phases  of  this  subject, 
perception,  observation,  and  memory  together  are 
able  to  master  the  work  that  is  given.  This  is  rec- 
ognized in  the  learning  of  the  more  simple  forms 
of  addition,  subtraction,  multiplication,  and  divi- 
sion. Many  of  these  exercises  are  the  learning  of 
a  mathematical  language  and  consist  of  the  com- 
mitting of  tables  and  combinations  of  numbers  so 
that  the  repetition  of  these  may  be  made  almost 
automatically  in  after  use.  It  is  thus  with  the 
multiplication  table,  with  elementary  fractions 
and  factoring,  with  the  fundamentals  of  compound 
numbers,  and  the  minor  applications  of  decimals. 
Memory  exercises,  mechanical  operations,  and 
concrete  examples  are  appropriate  for  the  educa- 
tion of  a  child  before  judgment,  reason,  or  even 


170  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

conceptual  power  are  shown  by  mental  develop- 
ment in  more  than  the  most  rudimentary  form. 
The  mechanical  operations  of  arithmetic  are  at- 
tractive to  pupils  in  the  primary  grades.  They 
like  the  graphic  representation,  the  forms  of  cal- 
culation, and  the  accuracy  of  the  results,  and  they 
acquire  the  foundations  for  higher  work  with  ra- 
pidity and  with  perfection  that  show  their  hearty 
appreciation  of  its  usefulness.  By  making  proper 
selections  of  work  that  are  given  in  arithmetical 
text-books,  the  processes  of  calculation  as  taught 
in  the  fundamental  rules,  in  fractions,  in  compound 
numbers,  and  other  parts  of  the  book  where  proc- 
esses are  the  important  thing  to  be  mastered, 
rapid  and  satisfactory  progress  can  be  made  even 
when  the  age  and  the  mental  development  of  the 
pupils  would  not  enable  tasks  to  be  performed 
where  judgment  and  reasoning  must  be  a  large 
factor. 

The  Higher  Types. — Judgment  and  reason  are 
mental  powers  that  require  time  to  appear  and  to 
mature.  They  constitute  thinking  involving  such 
abstract  relations  that  they  belong  to  the  mature 
mind,  not  to  the  child  mind.  They  are  not  de- 
pendent on  good  teaching,  on  correct  methods, 
or  on  systematic  instruction.  They  cannot  be 
manufactured  by  effort  or  by  training,  as  they 
are  phenomena  of  human  development  that  ex- 


THE  COURSE  OF  STUDY  171 

pand  and  show  capability  when  the  proper  age 
has  been  reached.  When  this  kind  of  maturity 
lias  come,  judgment  and  reason  assert  themselves, 
thinking  becomes  the  preferred  process  of  action, 
and  problems  of  all  kinds  are  desirable  exercises 
to  give  these  faculties  a  chance  for  service.  Even 
if  the  primary  child  withdraws  from  school  with- 
out having  learned  more  than  the  processes  and 
systems  of  calculations  taught  by  arithmetic,  he 
is  better  off  in  later  years  when  his  higher  mental 
faculties  appear  than  if  his  teachers  had  required 
him  to  study  his  arithmetic  in  the  order  commonly 
given  by  the  text-books  where  processes  of  calcu- 
lations and  problems  to  be  solved  follow  each 
other  in  regular  order  for  each  division  of  the  sub- 
ject. 

Other  Studies. — Information  studies,  such  as 
geography,  history,  and  physiology,  are  compara- 
tively easy  to  master,  if  the  teacher  has  ample 
knowledge  of  them  and  the  pupils  have  enough 
acquaintance  with  English  to  understand  the 
printed  page.  The  teacher's  acquaintance  with 
these  subjects  of  the  course  of  study  should  be 
extensive  and  thorough.  It  should  depend  on 
many  sources,  and  include  many  more  phases  of 
the  topics  considered  than  the  text-book  could  give. 
In  no  way  can  a  teacher's  influence  be  more 
strengthened   than  by   the  additional   interesting 


172  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

information  that  the  supplementing  of  the  text- 
book permits.  These  informational  subjects  are 
valuable  because  of  the  outlook  they  give,  because 
they  are  preliminary  to  a  life  study  of  more  ad- 
vanced lines,  and  because  they  give  breadth  of 
view  to  every  one  who  pursues  them  in  a  success- 
ful school. 


XXV 

THE  TEACHER  SUPPLY 

Quantity. — The  present  system  of  organizing 
country  schools  provides  twice  as  many  school  dis- 
tricts as  are  needed  to  successfully  care  for  the 
children  that  are  enrolled  in  the  schools.  This  fact 
alone  demands  a  teacher  supply  that  is  impossible 
to  provide,  since  the  salaries  are  too  small  to  give 
support  to  a  capable  teacher  and  the  work  to  be 
done  is  too  little  to  occupy  the  time  or  the  energy 
of  an  ambitious  teacher.  If  business  methods  were 
adopted,  the  actual  number  of  schools  organized 
would  depend  upon  the  actual  number  of  pupils 
that  would  enroll  and  upon  the  actual  amount  of 
work  that  the  schools  require  to  be  done.  Every 
good  teacher  wants  to  have  a  good-sized  school, 
every  good  school  must  contain  enough  pupils  to 
give  interest  and  enthusiasm  to  the  work,  and  every 
satisfactory  management  puts  schools  upon  a  busi- 
ness basis  and  insists  upon  true  economy.  Any 
other  method  of  conducting  public  affairs  is  con- 
trary to  an  honest  public  polic}'. 

Quality. — Good  business  judgment  also  requires 
that  schools  should  be  conducted  to  obtain  quality 

173 


174  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

of  work  as  well  as  quantity  of  work.  Expenditures 
for  educational  endeavor  should  be  wisely  made, 
because  if  such  undertakings  are  not  successful, 
then  the  expenditures  are  actual  waste  and  not 
investment.  The  law  of  supply  and  demand  should 
apply  to  such  business  enterprises,  and  if  there  is 
no  demand  there  should  be  no  supply.  Despite 
these  principles  of  business,  country  schools  are 
often  furnished  by  law  and  by  the  plans  of  the 
system  where  there  is  no  real  demand.  Money 
is  spent  that  is  in  the  treasury,  more  to  get  it  ex- 
pended than  to  bring  any  real  returns  for  it.  Such 
methods  of  management  make  quality  of  scholar- 
ship and  training  unnecessary  in  the  teacher,  and 
also  make  impossible  any  superior  quality  of  in- 
struction and  training  for  the  pupils.  Such  ad- 
ministration of  government  violates  the  principles 
of  respectable  management,  even  if  it  does  not 
violate  the  law  that  is  on  the  statute  books.  For 
these  reasons  there  is  an  inordinate  demand  for 
a  large  supply  of  teachers  of  meagre  qualifications, 
in  order  to  provide  for  weak  and  poorly  managed 
school  districts  where  the  greatest  effort  is  em- 
ployed in  spending  the  money  of  the  people  rather 
than  in  devoting  it  to  securing  valuable  returns 
for  such  expenditure. 

The  Better  Teacher. — The  kind  of  teacher  that 
is  positively  needed  in  a  country  school  is  one  that 


THE  TEACHER  SUPPLY  175 

is  thoroughly  conversant  with  country  occupa- 
tions, country  opportunities,  and  country  hfe.  The 
work  that  is  being  clone  by  the  people  requires  the 
best  mental  qualifications  in  the  workers  to  secure 
success.  The  homes  need  an  intellectual  atmos- 
phere to  inspire  the  children  to  the  right  valua- 
tion of  the  school.  All  things  being  equal,  the 
country-born,  the  country-bred  person  that  is  Hb- 
erally  educated  and  thoroughly  trained  will  ac- 
complish the  most  for  the  people  in  general  and 
the  pupils  in  particular.  The  notion  that  certain 
kinds  of  scholastic  education  without  regard  to 
these  other  things  is  all  that  is  necessary  to  pre- 
pare a  person  to  be  a  competent  country  teacher 
is  a  positive  mistake.  There  are  more  things  neces- 
sary to  make  a  competent  teacher  than  the  knowl- 
edge of  certain  elementary  and  secondary  branches. 
Plans  of  Training. — It  is  evident  that  some  or- 
ganized effort  must  be  adopted  to  educate  and 
train  country  teachers,  if  the  needed  supply  for 
even  a  well-organized  and  economical  system  is  to 
be  maintained.  As  long  as  the  way  into  the  voca- 
tion is  through  some  examining  system,  the  real 
difficulties  will  not  be  met,  as  the  examining  sys- 
tem will  be  kept  at  such  a  low  standard  that  a 
supply  of  efficient  teachers  will  not  be  obtained. 
As  long  as  the  way  is  through  graduating  from  a 
regular  high-school  course,  with  certain  elementary 


176  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

and  didactic  studies  to  count  for  preparation,  the 
supply  is  not  sought  in  the  right  place,  because 
high  schools  as  now  patronized  will  prepare  city 
residents  for  teaching  and  they  will  leave  the  coun- 
try and  go  to  the  city  as  rapidly  as  the  slightest 
opportunity  offers,  even  for  less  salary  and  for  less 
appreciation  of  their  services  than  they  might  be 
granted  in  the  country.  It  is  rare,  indeed,  that 
the  city-bred  will  find  it  possible  to  adapt  them- 
selves to  country  life,  since  they  are  attracted  to 
a  kind  of  life  and  society  that  the  country  does 
not  possess. 

Country  Teachers'  Courses. — If  the  high  schools 
opened  classes  for  the  subjects  of  study  that  are 
required  for  country  teaching  and  would  instruct 
such  persons  in  such  subjects  in  an  intensive  and 
thorough  manner  and  add  such  other  branches  as 
would  specially  prepare  country  people  for  this 
work,  it  seems  reasonable  to  suppose  that  a  bet- 
ter satisfied  and  a  more  keenly  appreciated  class 
of  workers  in  country  schools  could  be  presided. 
They  would  have  certain  necessary  knowledge  from 
experience,  they  would  recognize  the  importance 
of  this  knowledge,  and  they  would  return  to  these 
schools  with  interest  and  with  enthusiasm  and  be 
satisfied  to  devote  themselves  arduously  to  this 
kind  of  work  If  they  were  granted  a  suitable  Income 
for  a  permanency.    A  high-school  education  In  it- 


THE  TEACHER  SUPPLY  177 

self  is  in  reality  no  effective  preparation  for  suc- 
cessful teaching.  The  fact  that  many  high-school 
graduates  have  developed  into  strong  teachers  has 
been  due  to  learning  the  business  in  the  school  of 
experience  and  through  diligent  application  rather 
than  through  the  influence  of  the  high-school 
studies  that  they  have  pursued. 

Training. — It  is  common  usage  that  gives  a  loose 
meaning  to  the  word  training  when  referring  to  the 
preparation  of  teachers  for  their  work.  By  train- 
ing most  educational  writers  and  speakers  mean 
formal  instruction  in  school  management,  in  his- 
tory of  education,  in  methods  of  teaching,  and  in 
mind  study.  This  kind  of  instruction  is  beneficial 
to  the  practical  preparation  of  a  teacher.  It  may 
be  all  that  is  possible  in  these  days  to  be  done,  but 
yet  it  is  not  deserving  of  being  classified  as  real 
training  in  any  sense  of  the  word.  Real  training 
should  mean  actual  practice  in  teaching  under 
critical,  sympathetic,  developing  supervision  where 
the  ^hool  is  organized  for  laboratory  purposes 
and  where  the  teacher  in  training  does  the  work 
of  instruction.  He  should  be  constructively  criti- 
cised and  personally  directed,  so  that  growth  in 
efficiency,  in  power,  and  in  freedom  of  management 
are  positively  recognized  and  secured.  The  Eng- 
lish method  of  requiring  those  who  wish  to  be 
licensed  as  teachers  to  actually  work  under  the 


178  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

direction  of  a  teacher  of  first-grade  qualifications 
until  they  have  acquired  a  mastery  of  themselves 
and  of  the  mechanism  of  the  conduct  of  the  school 
and  feel  at  home  at  the  business  is  a  reasonably 
good  solution  of  the  country-school  problem  of 
training.  These  pupil-teachers  are  thus  trained 
in  method,  in  management,  and  in  self-mastery 
until  they  have  acquired  experience  that  assures 
them  of  reasonable  success  when  they  assume 
charge  of  a  school  themselves.  At  least  this  much 
practical  contact  should  be  had  from  the  teach- 
er's stand-point  before  the  entire  responsibility  of 
independent  service  should  be  permitted. 

The  Experienced  Teacher. — This  giving  the  bet- 
ter and  more  experienced  country  school-teachers 
an  enlarged  province  in  the  educational  system 
should  give  them  superior  rank,  a  somewhat 
larger  salary,  and  a  more  decisive  encouragement 
to  grow  in  efficiency  and  in  personal  power  as 
trainers  of  others.  They  would  be  recognized  as 
superior  in  knowledge,  in  capability,  in  manage- 
ment, and  in  efficiency  in  adapting  themselves  to 
the  special  interests,  the  notable  characteristics 
and  the  enlarged  possibilities  of  community  hfe. 
This  use  of  their  experience  and  of  their  success 
would  develop  a  class  of  country  teachers  that 
would  be  encouraged  to  acquire  much  more  than 
ordinary  scholarship  and  training;   they  would  be- 


THE  TEACHER  SUPPLY  179 

come  graduates  of  good  schools,  and  they  would 
make  a  study  of  social  conditions  and  of  means  of 
betterment  that  the  ordinary  regular  service  as- 
signed to  the  single  teacher  would  not  give.  This 
employment  of  the  superior  teachers  to  manage 
model  or  demonstration  schools  would  be  an  eco- 
nomic way  to  reach  a  much-needed  result  in  a  prac- 
tical and  possible  way. 

The  Training  Schools. — The  organizing  of  sev- 
eral normal  schools  in  a  State  cannot  solve  the 
problem  beyond  that  of  giving  instruction  in  the 
branches  of  scholastic  and  professional  knowledge 
needed.  Actual  training  in  country-school  work 
must  be  in  the  country  school  districts  and  must 
be  in  charge  of  these  expert  teachers  who  have 
been  carefully  prepared  and  trained  for  their  work. 
There  would  need  to  be  as  many  such  training  or 
demonstration  schools  as  the  necessities  of  keep- 
ing up  the  supply  required,  and  the  training  work 
should  follow  the  scholastic  study  that  such  pro- 
spective teachers  should  have.  The  high  schools 
are  so  numerous  that  they  could  easily  establish  a 
proper  course  of  stud}^  to  give  the  instruction  side 
of  this  preparation.  They  could  become  little 
normal  schools  in  reality  for  this  laudable  purpose, 
and  they  would  secure  a  patronage  from  the  coun- 
try people  that  would  rapidly  furnish  the  supply  of 
students  needed   for  the  course  in   training  that 


180  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

should  be  given  in  the  demonstration  schools.  This 
plan  is  feasible;  it  is  easily  organized  and  financed. 
State  subsidy  could  test  the  plan  very  easily,  and 
the  corps  of  teachers  found  in  the  country  schools 
would  be  remarkably  improved  without  any  loss 
of  time  or  waste  of  effort. 

The  Institute. — This  plan  of  teacher  training 
and  supply  would  enable  the  organization  of  a 
county  institute  for  the  expert-demonstration 
school-teachers  and  a  township,  or  more  local,  in- 
stitute for  the  other  teachers.  The  expert  that  is 
in  charge  of  the  demonstration  training  school 
could  conduct  these  local  institutes  and  local  teach- 
ers' meetings.  She  could  conduct  a  teachers'  read- 
ing circle  where  the  continued  study  of  the  teach- 
ers could  be  guided,  improved,  and  encouraged. 
She  could  develop  such  activities  in  the  schools 
within  local  reach  of  this  centre  as  would  build  up 
public  sentiment,  secure  public  co-operation,  bring 
about  better  equipment  and  larger  interest  in  the 
possibiHties  to  be  attained.  Under  this  condition, 
district  supervision  would  be  effective,  county 
supervision  would  be  a  masterly  occupation,  and 
educational  enterprise  and  activity  would  be  mar- 
vellously enlarged  and  conserved. 


XXVI 

AGRICULTURE 

School  Expansion. — The  primitive  elementary 
school  was  organized  to  assist  the  home  to  give 
the  rudiments  of  literacy  to  the  children  of  a  com- 
munity. For  that  reason  reading,  spelling,  pen- 
manship, letter-writing,  and  arithmetic  constituted 
the  assigned  curriculum.  It  was  never  supposed 
that  the  function  of  the  school  included  the  teach- 
ing of  occupations,  as  it  was  inferred  that  all  such 
kinds  of  knowledge  and  training  belonged  ostensi- 
bly to  the  home.  As  a  matter  of  course,  this  orig- 
inal conception  of  what  a  school  might  do  was 
modified  by  experience  and  by  development,  since 
teachers  gradually  taught  other  branches  of  study, 
and  the  people  also  began  to  ask  for  other  things 
that  they  considered  the  school  best  organized  to 
give.  By  an  evolutionary  process  lines  of  study 
and  teaching  were  added  until  the  function  of  the 
school  became  the  teaching  of  everything  that 
could  be  classified  as  suitable  for  the  education  of 
boys  and  girls  for  intellectual,  moral,  and  practical 
life.  The  several  States  have  organized  systems 
of  elementary  education,  provided  laws  governing 

181 


182  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

the  management  of  such  systems,  designated  offi- 
cers to  conduct  such  systems,  authorized  money  to 
be  raised  to  pay  the  expenses  from  the  pubHc  treas- 
ur}^,  and  decided  standards  of  courses  of  instruc- 
tion and  of  qualifications  of  teachers.  To-day  the 
quantity  of  subject  matter  that  can  be  taught  is 
so  excessive  that  no  elementary  school  can  have 
the  time  to  satisfactorily  accomplish  all  that  is 
permitted  or  demanded.  Hence  the  question  of 
eHmination  has  become  prominent,  the  absolutely 
essential  is  to  be  preserved,  the  extraneous  and  the 
unimportant  is  to  be  dropped,  and  room  in  the 
school  course  is  to  be  found  for  the  most  desirable, 
the  most  useful,  and  the  most  important. 

Vocational  Notions. — This  expansion  of  the 
school  has  not  been  confined  to  the  speculative 
studies  alone,  but  it  has  also  come  in  the  adoption 
of  the  vocational  studies  as  at  least  of  secondary 
importance  to  the  fundamental  studies  universally 
accepted.  This  problem  in  the  city  and  in  the 
town  has  been  a  very  complex  and  profoundly  diffi- 
cult one,  because  the  occupations  of  the  people 
are  so  varied.  The  preparing  of  a  curriculum  and 
of  an  equipment  to  handle  the  trade-school  educa- 
tion for  a  city  community  involves  great  expense. 
In  the  multiplicity  of  things  that  can  be  done  to 
develop  mechanical  skill,  the  selection  of  the  act- 
ually important  is  very  much  more  intricate  than 


AGRICULTURE  183 

the  la3^man  might  think.  Then  education  of  a 
real,  substantial,  mental  character  is  wanted  as  a 
positive  result  even  more  than  the  practical  teach- 
ing of  vocations  if  the  school  is  to  fulfil  its  real 
function  in  society.  The  popular  attitude  toward 
these  problems  is  more  likely  to  judge  results  by 
the  skill  shown  in  occupational  lines  than  it  is  to 
conclude  that  the  work  accomplished  is  to  be  com- 
mended if  well-trained,  well-informed  minds  are 
shown  by  the  pupils.  Manual  training  is  an  at- 
tempt to  make  vocational  activities  educational 
rather  than  to  give  a  vocational  bias  to  the  pu- 
pils. It  is  planned  to  give  the  eye,  the  hand,  and 
the  muscular  system  of  the  pupils  such  training  as 
to  develop  in  them  possibilities  that  would  other- 
wise be  neglected.  Manual  training  does  not  sat- 
isfy the  vocational  ideal  of  education,  for  it  does 
not  produce  expert  mechanics  or  well-equipped 
W'orkmen  of  any  kind,  and  does  not  reach  the  end 
of  preparing  pupils  for  occupations  that  they  could 
follow  as  a  life  career.  Hence  it  is  being  rejected 
in  many  quarters  as  not  meeting  the  public  demand 
for  complete  education  and  vocational  or  trade 
schools  are  taking  its  place  in  the  school  system. 
Agriculture. — The  country  schools  are  the  most 
favored  in  regard  to  vocational  education  because 
the  patrons  of  these  schools  are  all  producers  of  one 
general  kind  and  are  all  interested  in  farming  and 


184  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

farm  life.  There  is,  then,  not  the  confusion  nor 
the  complexity  that  exists  in  the  towns  and  cities, 
because  the  people  are  more  homogeneous  in  occu- 
pation, more  able  to  unite  in  a  single  conception  of 
accomplishment,  more  harmonious  in  thought  as 
to  their  undertakings  as  a  community,  and  more 
competent  through  daily  experience  to  recognize 
the  full  value  of  the  results  and  developments  that 
the  vocational  work  of  the  school  exhibits.  These 
conditions  magnify  the  necessity  of  the  teacher's 
having  abundant  qualifications  in  scientific  agri- 
culture and  demonstration  work.  He  must  have 
more  in  reality  than  the  empirical  knowledge  that 
is  possessed  by  the  boys  and  the  girls  he  will  teach, 
and  he  must  be  more  widely  informed  in  science, 
art,  literature,  and  mathematics  than  the  men  and 
women  of  the  community  he  may  ofl&ciall}^  serve. 
The  province  of  the  teacher  must  command  the  re- 
spect and  the  esteem  of  the  people  because  of  dis- 
tinct accomplishments,  or  else  thework  being  done 
is  not  valued  and  the  place  of  leadership  attained. 
The  Province  of  the  Study. — Agriculture  is  a 
study  that  is  both  a  science  and  an  art.  It  demands 
of  those  who  follow  it  both  studentship  to  learn  the 
complex  science  and  skill  in  applying  the  art  to 
the  obtaining  of  results.  It  relies  upon  the  soil, 
the  air,  the  weather,  the  seasons,  and  the  climate 
as  natural  forces  to  permit  results  to  be  accom- 


AGRICULTURE  185 

pllshed,  and  yet  it  masters  untoward  conditions 
that  may  be  found  in  any  of  these  through  the 
wisdom,  the  learning,  and  the  ingenuity  of  man, 
and  compels  results  that  science,  skill,  and  experi- 
ence have  made  possible.  This  requires  a  knowl- 
edge of  the  special  quality  of  soils,  an  ability  to 
determine  their  constituents,  a  capability  in  im- 
proving them,  and  an  experience  in  cultivating 
them  that  are  fundamental  to  decided  success  in 
farming.  This  does  not  consist  of  ordinary  knowl- 
edge such  as  common  men  could  acquire  without 
special  education  and  training,  and  yet  it  is  just 
the  kind  of  knowledge  that  agriculturists  should 
learn  and  that  they  can  be  taught  if  they  have  a 
properly  equipped  school  with  suitable  laboratory 
for  such  investigation  accompanied  with  a  dem- 
onstration garden  or  farm  where  such  soil  experi- 
ments can  be  exhibited  for  the  benefit  of  all. 

Plant  Life. — Agricultural  study  also  includes  a 
knowledge  of  the  various  plants  that  are  cultivated 
on  the  farm  with  such  discriminations  as  show  the 
quality  of  each  plant  and  the  highest  standard  of 
its  production.  This  includes  the  problems  of 
seed,  of  planting,  of  cultivating,  of  harvesting,  and 
of  marketing,  showing  what  is  profitable,  what  is 
superior  in  type,  what  utility  it  shows  in  service, 
and  what  ways  can  be  used  to  increase  quantity 
and  quality.    In  this  way  the  teacher  and  the  com- 


186  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

munity  can  co-operate  to  spread  the  most  practical 
information  regarding  wheat,  corn,  oats,  barley, 
rye,  vegetables,  grasses,  and  other  productions 
that  are  common  in  the  section  where  the  school 
is  located.  Accompanying  such  instruction  as  can 
be  given  to  the  children  of  the  school,  the  young 
people  that  are  outside  of  the  school,  and  the  older 
people  who  will  co-operate  to  advance  the  common 
interests,  since  the  tests  can  be  regularly  made  in 
the  demonstration  garden,  the  undertaking  will 
have  double  value  to  all  who  participate  in  the  im- 
provement of  the  communit}'. 

Accompanying  these  things  can  be  a  study  of  the 
different  plants  that  grow  naturally  upon  the  soil 
and  that  are  a  hindrance  to  proper  agricultural 
success.  These  weeds  can  be  studied  and  classi- 
fied, their  extermination  taught,  their  methods  of 
distribution  determined,  and  their  prevention  as- 
certained. Undesirable  weeds  that  are  likely  to 
be  introduced  into  the  farms  and  that  should  be 
known  and  recognized  on  their  first  appearance 
deserve  special  attention  and  consideration. 

Animal  Life. — In  a  similar  way  the  animals  and 
the  animal  products  should  be  studied  and  the 
better  standards  determined.  This  can  be  done 
by  making  use  of  the  live-stock  that  belongs  in 
the  community  and  that  is  of  the  best  and  high- 
est grade  for  production,  for  farm  use,  and   for 


AGRICULTURE  187 

the  market,  so  that  stock-breeding,  stock-raising, 
stock-judging,  and  stock  improvement  could  re- 
ceive the  attention  and  the  determination  that 
their  value  to  the  community  deserve.  Along 
with  this  is  the  poultry  yard  and  its  products, 
including  all  the  things  that  should  be  known 
about  housing,  feeding,  care,  and  improvement  of 
the  variety  of  fowls  that  are  profitably  produced 
on  the  farm. 

Other  Agencies  for  Interest. — All  such  informa- 
tion must  have  illustration,  demonstration,  and 
interpretation  to  be  of  practical  value,  and  must 
be  carried  to  the  home  and  have  hearty  co-opera- 
tion there  in  order  to  be  as  effective  and  as  influ- 
ential as  its  merits  deserve.  Many  of  the  things 
done  and  taught  culminate  in  a  district  fair,  in 
which  prizes  may  be  given,  premiums  may  be 
awarded,  competition  may  be  encouraged,  between 
pupils  of  the  same  age,  between  families  and  pa- 
trons, and  between  the  community  and  other  com- 
munities. Preparation  for  this  fair  could  be  made 
the  entire  year,  and  the  homes  and  the  school  could 
well  unite  to  interest  the  children  in  what  is  profit- 
able, practicable,  and  specially  successful.  It  is 
very  remarkable  what  progress  can  be  made,  what 
a  fund  of  knowledge  can  be  acquired,  what  prac- 
tical common-sense  can  be  developed,  and  what 
an  interest  in  stud}^  and  in  the  characteristics  of 


188  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

superior  farming  can  be  provoked.  To  reach  these 
desirable  ends  the  different  organizations  that  can 
be  perfected  in  the  community  should  co-operate, 
a  continuous  intellectual  atmosphere  should  be 
provided,  and  the  welfare,  happiness,  and  educa- 
tion of  all  should  be  secured. 

The  Profit  of  These  Phases. — Education  is  not  a 
preparation  for  living  sometime  in  the  future.  It 
is  real  living  for  every  child  now.  Success  is  not 
some  future  experience  that  an  individual  must 
wait  years  to  enjoy;  it  is  a  thing  that  can  be  a  part 
of  a  child's  realization  every  year.  Work  is  not 
drudgery  or  unpleasant  when  it  is  accompanied  by 
conditions  that  arouse  the  interest,  improve  the 
zeal,  inspire  the  enthusiasm,  and  train  the  power 
of  realization.  The  conventional  education  con- 
ferred by  the  country  school  must  be  so  related 
and  combined  with  country  hfe  that  the  impor- 
tance of  both  may  be  recognized  and  their  use- 
fulness as  co-operating  factors  appreciated.  When 
these  truths  are  mastered,  when  their  application 
is  secured,  when  the  developments  of  progress  are 
adopted,  then  civilization  has  come  to  its  own  and 
the  producing  classes  will  have  received  their  full 
heritage  in  the  worlds  of  activity  and  happiness. 


XXVII 

HAPPINESS 

The  Chief  End. — Whatever  result  may  be  ob- 
tained by  human  effort,  whatever  undertaking  may 
be  planned  by  human  wisdom,  whatever  object 
may  be  sought  by  human  experiment  and  human 
inquiry,  whatever  purpose  may  be  fundamental  to 
human  sacrifice,  whatever  success  may  be  secured 
by  human  achievement,  yet  happiness  of  body,  of 
mind,  and  of  spirit  is  the  chief  end  of  all  human 
attainment.  If  everything  else  that  man  can  de- 
sire is  possessed,  if  every  ambition  is  realized,  and 
every  comfort  gained,  yet  without  happiness  all  is 
in  vain  and  all  is  lost.  Education  of  every  kind 
and  degree  is  hopeless  and  helpless  so  far  as  hu- 
man satisfaction,  human  peace,  and  human  recog- 
nition is  concerned,  unless  happiness  is  real,  con- 
stant, and  active.  To  reach  this  stage  is  the  work 
of  the  home,  of  the  school,  of  the  church,  and  of 
all  civilization.  It  is  an  indirect  attainment,  and 
yet  it  is  the  supreme  attainment.  It  is  a  conse- 
quence of  having  kept  the  laws  of  health  and  hy- 
giene so  far  as  the  physical  well-being  is  concerned; 
it  is  a  result  of  having  obeyed  the  laws  of  mental 

189 


190  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

development  and  mental  training  so  far  as  intel- 
lectual well-being  is  concerned;  it  is  an  effect  of 
having  established  righteousness  of  life,  charita- 
bleness of  attitude,  and  holiness  of  disposition  so 
far  as  spiritual  well-being  is  concerned. 

The  Doctrine  of  Equality. — Human  personalities 
are  not  equal  in  any  respect.  It  is  not  necessary 
that  they  should  be  equal.  In  fact,  there  are  many 
reasons  why  equality  would  not  contribute  to  the 
welfare  of  any  one,  either  in  prosperity,  success, 
or  happiness.  Inequality  in  personal  strength,  in 
personal  talent,  in  personal  tendencies,  and  in  per- 
sonal acquirements  and  capability  is  a  blessing  to 
the  world  and  to  the  aims  and  objects  of  civiliza- 
tion. A  man  is  not  more  of  a  man  of  parts  or  a 
man  of  usefulness  because  he  has  the  special  gift 
of  acquiring  wealth,  or  of  acquiring  scholarship, 
or  of  acquiring  the  skill  of  an  artist,  or  of  display- 
ing power  as  an  organizer  or  as  a  statesman.  This 
condition  of  variability  of  talent  found  among 
men  permits  every  one  to  make  a  valuable  con- 
tribution to  society  for  the  benefit  of  others  and 
thus  raise  the  total  accomplishments  of  civiHza- 
tion  far  beyond  what  would  be  at  all  possible  for 
equality  to  give.  This  making  a  contribution  to 
the  common  good  is  the  duty  and  the  privilege  of 
every  individual  human  being.  This  recognition 
of  a  constant  personal  debt  to  society  that  should 


•-) 


HAPPINESS  191 

be  honorably  and  fairly  paid  with  pleasure  and 
with  sincerity  is  the  key  to  the  solution  of  most  of 
the  conflicts  and  evil  tendencies  of  civilization 
Let  every  one  use  his  talent  for  the  benefit  of 
others,  and  his  own  happiness  and  success  are  as 
sured. 

The  Doctrine  of  a  Fair  Chance. — Education  of 
every  kind  is  dependent  upon  the  doctrine  of  a 
fair  chance  for  its  proper  development  and  expan- 
sion. Men  will  always  follow  diverse  occupations 
and  represent  diflPerent  activities  in  society.  These 
occupations  are  all  great  opportunities  if  they  are 
carried  out  to  their  ultimate  conclusions.  No  ser- 
viceable occupation  that  is  essential  to  the  prog- 
ress, the  maintenance,  or  the  improvement  of  the 
race  should  be  considered  as  unworthy  of  human 
effort.  Hence  education  is  not  alone  for  the  cler- 
gyman, the  physician,  the  lawyer,  the  architect, 
the  engineer,  or  the  school-teacher;  it  has  just 
as  much  a  place  in  the  enlightening  and  training 
of  the  farmer,  the  mechanic,  the  merchant,  and  the 
employee  of  the  railway.  It  is  true  that  these  dif- 
ferent callings  in  life  are  different  in  their  gifts,  in 
their  output,  and  in  their  skill.  The  problem  of 
education  includes  the  giving  to  each  individual 
the  opportunity  to  make  the  best  of  himself  in 
every  way  possible,  and  it  is  therefore  reasonable 
and  right  that  schools  should  be  maintained  for 


192  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

the  education  and  the  training  of  all  for  the  high- 
est station  of  efficiency  in  living.  It  is  an  error  to 
suppose  that  the  comparison  as  to  the  superiority 
of  one  work  of  skill  over  another  is  a  correct 
method  of  measuring  the  degree  of  capability  of 
individual  efforts.  Painting  a  picture  is  neither 
equal  nor  unequal  to  inventing  an  engine.  The 
carving  of  a  marble  statue  is  neither  equal  nor 
unequal  to  the  building  of  a  cathedral.  Practis- 
ing law  is  neither  equal  nor  unequal  to  manufact- 
uring. Developing  an  important  work  In  engi- 
neering is  neither  equal  nor  unequal  to  making 
necessary  and  proper  laws  in  the  halls  of  legisla- 
tion. Merchandising  is  neither  equal  nor  unequal 
to  farming.  What  can  be  truthfully  said  that  is 
not  complimentary  to  the  accomplishments,  the 
recognitions,  and  the  values  involved  in  every 
honorable  calling  that  civilization  has  developed.? 
The  problem  of  inquiry  as  to  what  are  fair  chances 
for  boys  and  girls  must  be  solved  by  the  boys  and 
girls  themselves,  relying  upon  their  talents,  their 
tastes,  and  their  capabilities  as  guides.  The  com- 
mon idea  that  all  that  a  man  needs  is  a  special 
kind  of  education  to  make  his  career  a  great  suc- 
cess in  that  direction  is  a  fallacious  one,  if  it  is  as- 
sumed to  beheve  that  any  person  could  wisely 
take  such  a  course  In  determining  his  vocation  in 
any  special  direction  that  ambition  might  dictate. 


HAPPINESS  193 

Neither  is  it  to  be  understood  that  there  is  only 
one  special  vocation  for  every  person  and  that  if 
he  does  not  discover  that  particular  specialty  his 
failure  is  certain.  The  differences  to  be  found  in 
individuals  are  not  so  special  as  might  be  inferred, 
for  talents  are  more  general  and  more  universal 
than  such  a  theory  would  assert.  It  is  probable 
that  most  persons  could  devote  themselves  to  any 
one  of  a  dozen  callings  and  obtain  creditable  re- 
sults. The  staying  by  the  selected  calling  until  it 
is  carried  to  extraordinary  development  and  suc- 
cess is  the  main  thing. 

Selfishness. — The  greatest  source  of  unhappi- 
ness  is  sordid  selfishness.  It  brings  an  untoward 
condition  to  the  most  prominent  success,  because 
it  robs  the  soul  of  the  spiritual  adjustments  of 
generosity,  of  charity,  and  of  helpfulness  that  are 
so  essential  to  an  individual's  self-development. 
The  man  who  attains  wealth  and  uses  it  in  an  ex- 
tremely selfish  and  limited  way,  as  though  it  be- 
longed to  him  and  not  to  society,  is  miserable,  in- 
deed, because  he  cannot  know  what  happiness  is 
except  as  his  ideal  is  gratification  of  appetite,  dis- 
sipation, or  gloating  over  the  earthly  accumula- 
tions he  has  made  for  a  temporary  purpose.  The 
man  who  has  attained  great  distinction  in  profes- 
sional, civic,  or  national  life,  and  who  uses  this 
temporary  promotion  and  power  for  his  own  grat- 


194  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

ification  and  prosperity,  regardless  of  the  needs  of 
civilization  and  of  the  higher  and  nobler  life  of 
society,  is  a  certain  candidate  for  profound  depths 
of  unhappiness,  because  he  will  gather  a  harvest 
of  regrets  and  of  abandonment  of  peace  through 
inheriting  the  ingratitude  of  his  fellow-men  and 
the  ultimate  repudiation  of  his  claims  for  great- 
ness. 

The  man  who  would  reach  success  in  any  voca- 
tion, and  through  that  success  be  respected  and 
esteemed  by  his  fellow-men,  must  become  also  a 
great  and  useful  factor  in  the  higher  lines  of  civil- 
ization's endeavors;  he  must  contribute  personally 
to  every  end  that  helps  the  moral  and  spiritual 
betterment  of  society,  and  he  must  have  an  im- 
portant part  in  the  ameHoration  of  the  ills  of  man- 
kind. He  must  co-operate  to  the  end  that  pov- 
erty and  sickness  and  suffering  and  wickedness 
may  be  eliminated,  and  that  prosperity  and  health 
and  comfort  and  righteousness  may  be  enthroned. 
There  is  enough  money,  there  is  enough  humanity, 
there  is  enough  helpfulness,  there  is  enough  love, 
there  is  enough  patriotism  in  the  world,  that  are 
wasted,  undeveloped,  unused,  or  unappreciated, 
which,  if  put  into  the  service  of  mankind,  would 
make  the  present  day  almost  a  millennium.  If 
only  the  surplus  of  these  things  were  properly 
used,  there  would  be  a  marvellous  revolution  in 


HAPPINESS  195 

the  aims,   the  purposes,   and   the  possibilities  of 
society. 

Personal  Character. — Education  cannot  stop 
with  the  material  things  of  Hfe  nor  with  the  scholar- 
ship and  learning  that  the  worlds  of  intellectuality 
have  produced,  nor  with  the  humanitarian  theories 
and  philosophies  of  civilization,  as  its  final  and 
complete  aim  is  spirituality  of  personal  character. 
Life  is  not  alone  of  the  body,  nor  of  the  body  and 
mind,  but  of  the  body,  mind,  and  spirit.  It  is 
comparatively  easy  to  attain  the  materialistic  qual- 
ities and  successes  of  this  prosperous,  remarkable 
world,  compared  to  the  attainments  in  intellect- 
ual qualities  and  successes  that  may  be  secured  by 
application,  industry,  and  sacrifice.  But  all  of 
these  are  petty  compared  with  the  attainment  of 
spirituality  of  personal  character.  Education  and 
development  in  the  physical  realm  of  humanity 
can  be  accomplished  in  the  limited  period  assigned 
by  nature  to  the  body  to  grow  and  to  develop. 
Education  and  development  in  the  intellectual 
realm  can  be  accomplished  in  the  limited  years  as- 
signed by  nature  to  childhood  and  youth  and  early 
manhood.  Education  and  development  in  the 
spiritual  personal  realm  have  no  limits  but  those 
of  years  of  life,  of  diligent  endeavor  in  the  ac- 
complishing of  good  for  others,  and  in  actual  sac- 
rifices that  mean  the  betterment  of  mankind.    It 


196  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

does  matter  what  personal  physical  habits  an  in- 
dividual may  acquire;  it  does  matter  what  per- 
sonal standards  of  scholarly  usefulness  and  help- 
fulness to  others  he  may  adopt  for  his  line  of  ac- 
tion; it  does  matter  what  relationships  of  personal 
morality  and  spirituality  of  character  he  may  ac- 
cept as  the  crowning  act  of  his  motive  for  co-op- 
eration with  God  and  with  man,  because  on  these 
things  will  depend  what  education,  as  given  in  the 
home,  in  the  school,  in  the  church,  and  in  society, 
can  accomplish  in  the  making  of  a  man. 


XXVIII 

CONDITIONS  AND  PROSPECTS 

The  Price  of  Land. — Happiness  among  country 
people  is  dependent  upon  the  success  of  the  work 
of  the  farmer.  Agricultural  prosperity  is  essen- 
tial to  put  the  people  in  the  right  spirit  to  make 
liberal  appropriations  of  money  for  the  support  of 
the  schools.  Education  needs  capital  and  energy 
to  secure  progress.  The  conditions  in  country 
life  are  not  entirely  favorable  for  progress  and  the 
remedies  for  these  hindrances  are  not  easy  to  in- 
vent or  to  apply.  In  many  parts  of  the  United 
States  the  price  of  land  has  increased  so  rapidly 
in  the  past  twenty-five  years  that  the  land-owners 
have  become  capitalists.  Their  wealth  has  multi- 
plied many  times  through  these  frequent  ad- 
vances in  price,  and  speculation  in  land  has  been 
very  active.  This  change  in  the  price  of  land  has 
modified  the  problems  of  production  of  crops  and 
has  had  the  effect  of  making  much  farming  un- 
profitable, considering  the  capital  that  is  invested 
in  the  land.  The  land-owning  farmer  has  become 
wealthy  because  of  this  unearned  increment,  and 
at  the  same  time  has  found  his  occupation  unpro- 

197 


198  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

ductive  in  returns,  while  the  tenant  farmer  has 
been  induced  to  neglect  the  proper  care  of  the 
soils  as  his  financial  interests  insist  that  he  seek 
temporary  rather  than  permanent  benefit. 

The  High  Price  of  Living. — The  large  price  paid 
for  land  in  making  an  investment,  the  desire  to 
make  this  investment  profitable  by  obtaining  fair 
returns,  the  decline  in  the  productiveness  of  the 
soils  through  cultivation  of  crops,  the  shortage 
of  the  crops  from  year  to  year  in  quantity  and 
quality,  and  the  expansion  in  the  population  to  be 
supported  have  contributed  collectively  to  the 
increase  of  the  price  for  farm  products  and  have 
made  the  support  of  governmental,  social,  edu- 
cational, and  family  expenses  a  positivel}^  increas- 
ing burden.  The  country  community  has  ex- 
perienced the  larger  proportion  of  these  financial 
difficulties,  and  as  a  consequence  the  problems  of 
social,  moral,  and  educational  improvement  have 
been  gradually  enlarged  and  complicated  until 
they  have  become  the  more  important  questions 
of  the  present  time.  Even  with  this  advancing 
price  for  farm  products  of  all  kinds  the  country 
community  has  not  been  progressive  and  enter- 
prising because  so-called  "hard  times"  have  been 
the  regular  experience  of  the  people.  In  addition 
to  this,  the  shortage  of  trained  farm  employees, 
the  advance  in  the  wages  that  even  the  untrained 


CONDITIONS  AND  PROSPECTS  199 

can  obtain,  and  the  purchase  of  expensive  neces- 
sary farm  machinery,  have  added  many  factors 
to  the  conditions  that  have  made  farm  hfe  un- 
favorable. 

Speculation  in  Land. — The  Hmitations  in  the 
total  acreage  of  tillable  land,  the  large  amount  of 
capital  seeking  productive  investment,  the  profits 
that  have  been  realized  in  the  rise  of  the  price  of 
land,  all  have  contributed  to  induce  capitalists 
to  buy  land  for  business  purposes.  Experience 
has  shown  that  their  expectations  of  large  profits 
have  been  fully  realized.  All  these  elements  have 
added  to  the  difficulties  surrounding  the  country 
school  and  have  had  a  part  in  preventing  either 
its  normal  standardization  as  an  institution  or  its 
proper  improvement  as  an  agency  for  the  culture 
and  the  capability  of  the  people.  The  systems 
of  taxation  have  favored  also  the  non-resident  in- 
vestor rather  than  the  resident  farmer.  The  im- 
provements that  the  resident  farmer  makes  add  to 
the  value  of  all  real  property  in  his  neighborhood. 
His  taxes  are  larger  in  proportion  than  those 
of  the  non-resident  because  improved  land  sells 
at  a  higher  price  than  unimproved  land.  These 
conditions  have  enabled  individuals  to  own  large 
tracts  of  land  which  they  do  not  live  upon,  and 
they  have  produced  also  the  tenant  farmer  whose 
personal  interests  are  not  identified  permanently 


200  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

with  any  particular  community.  He  is  naturally 
unwilling  to  pay  large  taxes  upon  his  own  limited 
resources,  and,  having  the  right  as  an  elector  to 
assist  in  deciding  questions  of  taxation  for  schools, 
he  prevents  any  increase  of  school  expenditures. 
The  non-resident  landlord  is  in  sympathy  with 
this  policy  of  the  tenants,  and  as  a  consequence 
any  actual  improvement  in  schools  is  delayed. 
In  some  parts  of  the  farming  districts  more  than 
forty  per  cent  of  the  resident  electors  are  tenant 
farmers.  The  older  the  settlements  and  the  more 
wealthy  the  land-owners,  the  larger  does  this  per- 
centage become.  Unless  some  governmental  plan 
can  be  devised  to  improve  the  conditions  of  the 
actual  farmers,  enabling  them  to  own  the  farms 
they  conduct,  speculation  in  real  estate  cannot 
be  avoided,  and  little  if  any  progress  can  be 
realized  in  country-school  education. 

Progress  Hindered. — It  is  evident  that  social 
and  fiscal  conditions  are  fundamental  to  any  prog- 
ress in  the  education  of  the  masses.  It  is  posi- 
tive that  no  law  could  be  passed  that  will  force  a 
community  to  provide  educational  facilities  if  the 
people  do  not  appreciate  or  desire  them.  It  is 
certain  that  success  is  not  made  by  supervision 
or  by  inspection.  The  situation  requires  that  all 
such  undertakings  be  approached  indirectly  rather 
than    directly.     Social    and    educational  surveys 


CONDITIONS  AND  PROSPECTS  201 

have  established  the  fact  that  such  backward  and 
unfavorable  conditions  are  a  menace  to  progres- 
sive civilization.  The  first  institution  to  feel  the 
depression  that  follows  declining  prosperity  is  the 
country  school.  After  fifty  years  of  such  man- 
agement the  school-houses  are  no  better,  the 
course  of  study  is  no  richer,  and  the  aims  of 
education  are  no  higher.  Any  form  of  progress 
requires  people  with  resources,  ambitions,  hopes, 
and  determination  if  hindrances  are  to  be  re- 
moved and  obstacles  overcome. 

Factors  in  Interest. — To  be  a  proprietor  and 
not  a  lessee  is  an  important  distinction  in  organ- 
ized society  when  matters  of  public  welfare  are 
to  be  decided.  There  is  no  better  nor  more  ener- 
getic period  of  history  than  the  period  of  the 
American  pioneer.  This  is  due  to  the  fact  that 
enterprise  is  at  that  stage  at  a  high  mark,  pres- 
ent sacrifice  is  balanced  by  future  promise,  and 
every  immigrant  is  given  a  hearty  welcome  and 
a  prominent  place.  The  pioneer  is  interested, 
he  is  enthusiastic,  he  is  confident,  and  he  is  ener- 
getic. The  children  of  the  pioneers  are  noted  for 
their  success  and  for  their  enterprise  in  founding 
and  strengthening  institutions  of  culture  and 
progress.  When  they  give  up  farm  life  and  seek 
occupations  of  a  different  scope  they  are  suc- 
ceeded by  a  class  of  farm  laborers  rather  than  by 


202  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

a  class  of  farm  managers  and  owners.  In  many 
communities  the  original  inhabitants  have  been 
succeeded  by  immigrants  from  countries  where 
their  experience  and  training  have  not  prepared 
them  for  the  kind  of  school  management  adopted 
by  the  States.  In  addition  to  these  social 
changes,  the  land  has  become  too  expensive  for 
men  of  moderate  means  to  purchase,  and  they 
have  no  option  but  to  become  renters  of  the 
farms  of  retired  capitalists.  By  this  reorganiza- 
tion of  society  interest  is  weakened,  enterprise  is 
reduced,  and  progress  is  hampered.  The  men  and 
women  who  come  from  the  farm  under  this 
management  do  not  have  the  initiative,  nor  the 
opportunities,  nor  the  possibiHties  that  were  the 
characteristics  of  the  previous  generation. 

The  State. — In  this  uplift  of  country-school 
work  there  are  many  varying  situations,  and  uni- 
form treatment  and  legislation  are  impossible. 
The  whole  problem  needs  to  be  worked  out  sym- 
pathetically and  consistentl}^  through  wise  and 
energetic  administration.  The  State  should  adopt 
effective  and  notable  standards  and  then  oflFer 
pecuniary  inducements  to  secure  compliance. 
This  can  be  best  done  by  State  grants  of  money 
to  such  districts  as  fully  develop  conditions  im- 
posed by  the  standards.  By  this  procedure  the 
authority  of  the  local  management  would  be  rec- 


CONDITIONS  AND  PROSPECTS  203' 

ognized  and  popular  interest  in  the  work  would 
be  permanently  improved.  Initiative  must  be 
satisfied  with  a  gradual  expansion  of  such  a  move- 
ment. It  should  not  be  extended  so  rapidly  as 
to  become  universal  in  a  decade  because  perma- 
nence of  appreciation  and  of  strength  depends 
upon  a  cordial,  complete  acceptance  of  these  bet- 
ter things.  The  State  is  the  only  political  unit 
that  has  the  resources  to  reach  this  necessary 
solution  and  that  can  maintain  the  expenditures 
and  the  policy  for  a  long  enough  period  to  estab- 
lish success.  In  doing  this,  high  standards  should 
be  the  only  acceptable  ones,  as  any  other  policy 
would  cause  the  movement  to  be  first  neglected 
and  later  repudiated. 

Remedies  Proposed. — To  meet  these  exigen- 
cies many  plans  have  been  proposed.  The  nation 
and  the  States  are  seeking  ways  to  conserve  the 
natural  resources,  in  order  to  keep  the  people  pros- 
perous; they  are  distributing  gratuitous  informa- 
tion regarding  agriculture,  horticulture,  dairying, 
poultry  farming,  and  plant  and  animal  products. 
It  is  recognized  by  the  government  that  the  fut- 
ure is  decided  by  the  prudence  exercised  in  the 
present.  It  is  hoped  to  add  to  prosperity,  to  in- 
telHgence,  and  to  morality  by  securing  a  better 
understanding  and  a  better  status.  The  notion 
universally  prevails  that  by  proper  scientific  man- 


204  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

agement  cheaper  bread  for  the  multitude  can  be 
produced,  cheaper  meat  for  the  market  can  be 
obtained,  and  more  of  the  resources  of  labor  and 
thought  can  be  granted  for  comfort  and  culture, 
for  recreation  and  happiness.  Education  is  im- 
possible unless  there  is  enough  income  for  family- 
support  without  the  assistance  of  child  labor. 
There  must  be  a  rehef  from  productive  manual 
occupation  in  order  to  give  the  time  to  a  child  to 
go  to  school.  Leisure,  culture,  and  enlightenment 
are  concomitants  in  civilization.  Children  can- 
not study  if  overtaxed  by  any  kind  of  occupa- 
tion, and  hence  laws  have  been  passed  to  prevent 
the  years  of  childhood  being  taken  for  labor  in- 
stead of  education.  The  condition  of  the  labor- 
ing classes  must  be  improved  and  their  individual- 
ities must  be  conserved  if  the  education  of  their 
children  is  to  be  reached.  The  problem  of  the 
country  school  as  a  whole  is,  therefore,  social 
rather  than  pedagogical. 

The  Conclusion. — There  are  many  difficult 
problems  for  modern  civilization  to  solve.  Im- 
portant considerations  are  related  to  the  organ- 
ization and  the  management  of  the  system  of 
common  schools.  These  problems  are  identified 
with  complex  conditions  and  their  solutions  are 
not  readily  secured.  The  teacher  has  a  part,  the 
school-board  has  a  part,  the  patrons  have  a  part, 


CONDITIONS  AND  PROSPECTS  205 

the  electors  have  a  part,  the  officers  chosen  by  the 
people  have  a  part,  and  finally  the  general  assem- 
bly has  a  part.  The  work  that  each  of  these  can 
do  depends  upon  the  conditions  that  exist  and 
the  resources  that  are  at  command.  Improving 
society  is  not  a  service  that  can  be  accomplished 
in  a  short  time.  It  is  an  undertaking  that  will 
require  years  of  labor,  study,  and  legislation. 


V 


XXIX 

FINAL  WORDS 

Limitations. — In  an  attempt  of  this  kind  the 
treatment  accorded  is  necessarily  incomplete,  be- 
cause the  problems  involved  are  too  numerous  and 
too  complex  to  receive  more  than  partial  considera- 
tion. This  undertaking  cannot  be  more  than  a  dis- 
cussion of  the  chief  factors  that  must  have  a  large 
part  in  the  conduct  of  popular  education,  leaving 
to  others  additional  investigations  and  conclusions 
that  experience  will  indicate.  All  educational  work 
is  largely  an  approximation  toward  certain  well- 
considered  ideals.  What  may  be  the  best  for  one 
generation  should  not  suffice  for  succeeding  gen- 
erations. What  progress  is  most  desirable  at  any 
one  period  depends  upon  the  conditions  that  exist, 
the  people's  readiness  for  improvement,  and  the 
strength  and  quahty  of  the  leadership  that  can  be 
provided.  The  preparation  of  leaders  is  the  first 
step  in  the  plan  to  be  inaugurated,  as  without  sen- 
sible, well-trained  leadership  any  public  enterprise 
will  fail. 

Progress  Required. — The  country  schools  have 
been  neglected  by  the  last  generation  because  of 

206 


FINAL  WORDS  207 

the  marvellous  interest  that  has  been  felt  in  other 
kinds  of  activity.  Business  enterprise  has  so  rap- 
idly expanded,  prosperity  has  so  largely  increased, 
the  values  of  everything  produced  upon  the  farms 
have  so  decidedly  advanced,  the  investment  in  land 
for  farming  has  so  notably  enlarged  in  such  a  few 
years,  that  personal  and  public  interest  have  been 
almost  entirely  absorbed  in  the  struggle  to  keep 
control  and  obtain  a  fair  share  of  the  wealth  that 
was  being  developed  and  distributed.  These  things 
have  had  the  effect  ©fallowing  education  to  become 
secondary  to  business  and  industry,  and  the  boys 
and  girls  of  the  generation  have  not  received  their 
share  of  the  world's  opportunities  in  intellectual 
training  and  culture. 

Other  Fields  Cultivated. — While  the  country 
school  has  been  permitted  to  become  the  one  lag- 
gard in  the  educational  procession,  the  universities 
and  the  colleges,  the  high  schools  and  the  city 
schools,  have  enjoyed  extraordinary  development. 
Fine  buildings  have  been  erected,  the  most  exten- 
sive equipment  has  been  procured,  greatly  in- 
creased salaries  have  been  paid  teachers,  the  best 
talent,  training,  scholarship,  and  experience  have 
been  sought  for  the  work,  and  finally  the  main 
question  has  become,  what  remains  yet  to  be  done 
that  will  better  educate  and  train  the  children  for 
the  opportunities  afforded  by  the  age  ?    Vocational 


208  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

education  has  been  organized,  professional  educa- 
tion has  been  expanded,  and  requirements  for 
entering  these  occupations  have  been  much  in- 
creased, while  the  spirit  of  better  training  and 
broader  qualifications  has  been  accepted  and  re- 
alized. So  far  is  this  true  that  the  young  peo- 
ple of  the  farms  within  reasonable  reach  of  the 
cities  and  towns  have  abandoned  the  country 
schools  and  paid  tuition  to  attend  city  schools,  be- 
cause their  own  communities  have  not  been  alive 
to  the  situation.  Those  not  so  well  situated  and 
not  possessing  quite  so  much  initiative  have  not 
had  these  special  advantages  and  hence  are  not 
so  well  trained  or  so  well  prepared  as  the  times 
and  the  demands  require. 

What  the  People  Need. — To  remedy  these  con- 
ditions, the  people  and  the  teacherc  do  not  need 
formal  instruction  in  educational  principles  and 
methods  so  much  as  they  need  vital  instruction 
in  the  quahties  and  characteristics  that  are  neces- 
sary to  adapt  a  man  to  the  present  age.  To  this 
end  community  life  needs  to  be  enlarged,  the  com- 
munity spirit  needs  to  be  aroused,  the  commu- 
nity church,  adapted  to  country  conditions,  needs 
to  be  organized,  the  community  Sunday  school 
needs  to  be  maintained,  and  the  community  social 
and  religious  standards  need  to  be  readopted  and 
revivified.    It  is  admitted  that  this  revival  of  the 


FINAL  WORDS  209 

good  things  in  civilization  is  no  small  task,  as  to 
accomplish  such  results  must  mean  that  the  leader- 
ship must  be  sincere,  must  be  qualified,  and  must 
be  consecrated.  Humanity  is  the  only  great  thing 
after  all,  and  the  advancement,  improvement,  and 
betterment  of  men  is  the  one  notable  task  of  civ- 
ilization. 

Statutes  and  Progress. — All  of  the  difficulties 
here  suggested  are  not  to  be  charged  to  the  account 
of  the  people  of  the  community.  Too  long  have 
the  would-be  leaders  of  society  depended  upon  the 
making  of  law  to  produce  intelligence  and  morahty. 
Too  long  has  the  formal  been  given  instead  of  the 
vital.  The  common  remedy  for  all  evils,  short- 
comings, and  failures  is  to  propose  more  laws  with 
more  limitations  of  public  spirit  and  self-reliance. 
A  large  part  of  the  mistakes  of  the  present  age  con- 
sists in  this  disposition  to  rely  upon  legal  enact- 
ments of  legislatures  to  save  the  people.  The 
country  school  has  been  created,  limited,  restricted, 
and  hindered  by  statutes  that  are  supposed  to 
be  important  for  educational  organization  and 
management.  These  have  originated  from  the  en- 
deavor to  substitute  administration  and  supervi- 
sion and  direction  for  the  shortcomings,  the  weak- 
nesses, and  the  incompetence  of  the  teacher.  Fixed 
conditions  have  been  imposed,  minor  and  unsatis- 
factory standards  have  been  adopted,  and  weak 


'    210  THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL 

policies  and  insufficient  results  have  been  the  con- 
sequence. Educational  laws  should  be  simple  and 
general,  so  that  the  initiative  and  the  discretion 
of  school  officers  and  teachers  may  have  a  chance 
to  do  the  work  necessary  to  be  done.  The  present 
statutes  are  too  specific,  too  directive,  and  too 
limiting  to  permit  an  effective  school  system,  since 
personalities  in  action  and  in  application  make  the 
school  system  and  not  the  types  of  organization 
and  management.  The  attempt  to  make  the  school 
system  a  perfected  machine  in  its  operations  has 
violated  the  principle  of  freedom  in  school  man- 
agement and  the  conceptions  of  rights  taught  by 
democracy.  Discretion,  freedom,  initiative,  and 
personal  application  must  be  restored  in  their  ful- 
ness before  the  country  school  can  be  the  institu- 
tion that  the  needs  of  education  and  training  re- 
quire. Responsibility  must  be  felt,  recognition  of 
success  must  be  granted,  and  community  ambition 
must  be  permitted. 

Progress  in  Education. — The  adjustment  of  ed- 
ucational situations  is  one  of  spirit  rather  than 
one  of  fact.  When  the  spirit  of  a  community 
has  been  aroused,  when  the  ambition  has  been 
touched,  when  the  attitude  toward  the  objects 
of  life  is  free  to  act,  then  much  that  is  valuable 
and  permanent  is  sure  to  be  done.  There  must 
be  an  encouraging  note  in  the  tone  of  society,  there 


FINAL  WORDS  211 

must  be  an  eternal  hope  in  the  things  that  can  be 
accomplished,  there  must  be  a  firm  belief  in  the 
possibility  of  saving  humanity,  there  must  be  a 
consistent  faith  in  the  worth  of  living  and  doing,  if 
the  efforts  are  to  be  permanent  and  the  confidence 
of  success  is  sufficient.  It  is  the  right  spirit  in  edu- 
cation that  will  improve  and  solidify  a  right  public 
opinion,  that  will  establish  and  maintain  an  active 
public  interest,  that  will  secure  and  emphasize  a 
substantiality  of  public  decision,  and  that  will 
confirm  and  demand  the  fulfilment  of  expectations 
by  immediate  and  effective  public  action.  With 
these  conditions  realized,  with  these  purposes  en- 
throned, and  with  these  ideals  accepted,  the  coun- 
try school  can  become  a  notable,  an  efficient,  and 
a  model  institution  for  the  maintenance  of  culture, 
conscience,  and  character  in  human  society. 


INDEX 


Ability,  23. 

Academy,  152,  153. 

Adaptation  in  teaching,   12,   13, 

SO.  SI- 
Agriculture,  16,  34,  37,  116,  117, 

183,  197. 

As  a  study,  184,  185,  186,  187. 

Instruction  in,  41,  138,  164. 
Algebra,  50. 
Altruism,  69. 
Animal  life,  186,  187. 
Animals,  study  of,  186,  187. 
Application,  83. 
Apprehension,  83. 
Approximation,  206. 
Arithmetic,   29,   30,  49,   50,   54, 

163,  168,  169,  170,  171. 
Asceticism,  124,  125. 
Assignment  of  lessons,  86,  87,  88, 

92. 
Attitude,  of  community,  143. 

Of  pupils,  66. 
Authority  factor,  67,  68. 

Capabiutt,  23,  32,  38,  46,  51. 

Of  country  boys  and  girls,  144. 

Of  teacher,  130,  131,  155. 
Capitalists,  197. 
Carpentry,  37. 
Centre  of  interest,  60. 
Character,  22,  32,  64,  195,  196. 
City,  the,  attractions  of,  108. 

Homes,  142. 

Improvements,  142. 

Lawns  and  parks,  142. 

People  of,  140. 

Schools,  142. 


Civilization,  7,25, 38, 132,204,209. 
Class  leaders,  93,  94. 
Classification,  29,  30. 
Closing  school,  72. 
Clubs,  112. 

Literary,  40. 

Science,  41. 

Singing,  42. 

Women's,  42. 
College  entrance,  153. 
Common  sense,  62,  72,  III. 
Commoner,  10 1. 

Community,  local,  131,  134,  137, 
X42,  188,  209. 

Attitude  of,  143. 

Co-operation  in,  9. 

Country,  3,  S,  9,  33,  37,  39,  43. 
198. 

Life,  208. 

Meetings,  40,  41,  42,  43. 

Organization  of,  39. 

Spirit,  208. 

Unit,  149,  150. 
Companionship,  66. 
Comparison,  192. 
Competition,  44. 
Composition,  English,  167. 
Conduct,  57,  63,  64. 
Conservation,  203. 
Contract,  102. 
Cooking,  37,  164. 
Co-operation,  9,  II,   18,  39,  43, 
103,  104,  105,  113,  139,  14I- 
142,  144,  145,  194. 
Co-ordination,  II. 
Country  boys  and  girls,  energy 
of,  144. 


213 


214 


INDEX 


Country  life,   i6,   19,   108,   140, 
141,  17s,  176,  188,  197,  208. 
Dissatisfaction  with,  19. 
Country  pupils,  15. 
■;vCountry  school,  10,  45,  161,  162, 
'  163,  164,  165,  200,  202,  208, 

209. 
Business  side  of,  127,  142,  173, 

174.  _ 
Inspection  of,  129,  130. 
Isolation  of,  143. 
Place  in  community,  11. 
Progress  of,  134,  206,  207. 
State  subsidy  for,  129. 
Supervision  of,  129. 
y  Country  teacher,  131,  136,  148, 
154,  155,  164,  174,  17s,  176. 
County  superintendent,  114. 
County  unit,  149. 
Course  of  study,  28,  37,  138,  159. 
Crops,  197,  198. 
Culture,  5,  35,  132,  158,  199,  204. 

Intellectual,  13,  14,  32. 
Culture  studies,  14. 
Customs,  66,  93. 

Demonstration  schools,    137, 

179. 
Demonstration  work,  33,  34,  37, 

184. 
Discipline,  64,  75,  104. 

Methods  for  securing,  76. 
Dissipation,  109. 
District  fair,  187. 
Drawing,  164. 
Drills,  79. 

Economy,  134,  146,  156,  175. 

Practical,  17. 
Education,  33,  102,  157,  158. 

Aims  of,  201. 

American,  161. 

Chinese,  159. 


Egj'ptian,  160. 

Expenditures  for,  174. 

Fundamentals  of,  159. 

Greek,  160. 

Hebraic,  159. 

Hindoo,  159. 

Meaning  of,  21,  22,  25. 

Province  of,  125. 
Educators,  158. 
Efficiency,  132,  158. 
Electors,  5,  6,  7,  147,  200. 
English,  80,  165,  167,  171. 

Composition,  79,  163,  167,  168. 

Grammar,  79,  163,  166,  168. 

Language,  82,  163,  165,  168. 

Literature,  79,  163. 

Oral,  167. 

Pronunciation  of,  165,  166. 

Rhetoric,  168. 

Spelling,  79,  163,  165. 
Entertainment,   19,  43,  44,  108, 

109. 
Environment,  17,  25,  44,  143. 

Influence  of,  141. 
Equality,  doctrine  of,  190,  192. 
Esteem,  dG. 
Examinations,  131,  175. 

Aim  of,  81. 

Difficulties  of,  84,  85. 

Frequency  of,  82,  83. 

Nature  of,  80,  81. 

Place  of,  78. 

Province  of,  79. 

Purpose  of,  83,  84. 
Exercise,  American  idea  of,  1 23. 
Experience,  143,  177. 

Value  of,  17,  178. 
Expert,  the,  demand  for,  1 19, 180. 

Factor,  authority,  67. 
Force,  68. 
Intellectual,  67. 
Moral,  66, 


INDEX 


215 


Failure,  24,  64. 

In  conduct,  63. 
Fairs,  187. 
Family  life,  18. 
Farm  employees,  198. 
Farmer,  the,  education  of,  191. 

Independence  of,  139. 

Isolation  of,  139. 

Land-owning,  197. 

Mistakes  of,  140,  141. 

Tenant,  198. 
Fatigue,  49. 
Floor  plan,  77. 
Force  factor,  68. 
Freedom,  96. 

Geography,  82,  88,  163,  171. 

Grades,  50,  153. 

Grading,  30. 

Grammar,  English,  163,  166,  168. 

Habits,  14,  17,  22,  23,  32,  56, 

196. 
Habits  of  industry,   importance 

of,  14. 
Happiness,  5,  12,  13,  19,  37,  41, 

66,  188,  189,  193. 
"Hard  times,"  198. 
Health,  22,  36,  41,  51. 
Helpfulness,  moral,  18. 

Of  money,  132. 
High  school,  153,  176. 
History,  79,  82,  163,  171. 
Home,  the,    18,    142,    175,    187, 

189. 
Home  economics,  34,  138,  164. 
Home  training,  11. 
Hygiene,  163,  189. 

Imagination,  46,  48. 
Immigrant,  the,  201,  202. 
Improvements,  142. 
Incapability,  69. 


Incompetency,  69. 
Independence,  134,  135,  139. 

Lack  of,  142. 
Individual  characteristics,  65. 
Industry,  habits  of,  14,  17,  23. 
Inexperience,  76. 
Inferiority,  68. 
Information,  87. 
Ingenuity,  75,  76. 
Inspection,  129,  130,  143,  148. 
Instruction,  method  of,  93. 
Intellectual  factor,  67. 
Interest,  centre  of,  60. 
Isolation,  125. 

Of  country  school,  143."^ 

Results  of,  140. 

Weakness  of,  139. 

Jesuits,  methods  of  instruction 

oU  93- 
Judgment,  46,  48,  50,  72. 
justice,  63. 

Knowledge,  12,  156. 
Of  the  right,  63. 

Labor,  124,  133,  204. 
Land,  price  of,  197. 

Speculation  in,  199. 
Laymen,  140. 
Leaders,  105,  206. 
Leadership,  no,  206. 
Lectures,  35,  43. 
Legislation,  143,  209. 
Leisure,  109,  204. 
Lessons,  assignment  of,  86,  92. 

Open-book,  89. 
Library,  the,  112. 
Licenses,  137. 
Limitations,  206. 
Literary  clubs,  40. 
Living,  high  price  of,  198. 
Love,  66. 
Lyceums,  35,  79-  - 


216 


INDEX 


Machinery,  199. 
Manual  training,  164. 

Object  of,  183. 
Masses,  the,  133,  137,  158,  163. 
Mathematics,  80,  168. 
Memory,  46,  48. 
Men  teachers,  116. 
Methods,  91. 
Military  precision,  73. 
Mind,  development  of,  46,  48,  49, 

so- 
Moral  factor,  66. 
Moral  life,  32. 
Morality,  5,  196. 
Motives,  64. 
Music,  42. 
Vocal,  163. 

Nature  study,  164. 
Novelty,  75,  76,  96. 

Obedience,  56,  63. 
Occupation,   15,   17,  35,  36,  38, 
no,  140,  141,  142,  143,  144) 
181,  183,  191. 
Opportunities  191. 
Organization,  in,  119. 
Educational,  118. 
In  school,  27. 

Of  country  community,  39. 
Of  supervision,  115. 
Organizations,  40,  41,  42,  43,  44, 

112. 
Over-discipline,  73,  74. 

Parents,  154. 
Patience,  84,  85. 
Patrician  class,  144. 
Patrons,  7. 
Peasant  class,  144. 
People,  the,  100,  Id,  103,  104, 
106,  118,  119,  120,  208,  209. 
Perception,  46,  47,  48. 


Perseverance,  85. 

Personality,  dealing  with,  65. 

Physical  training,  164. 

Physiology,  163,  168,  171. 

Physique,  144. 

Pioneer,  the,  134,  201. 

Plant  life,  185. 

Plants,  study  of,  185,  186. 

Play,  121. 

Playground,  the,    73,    no,    121, 

122. 
Political  influence,  lOO,  loi. 
Popularity,  25,  66. 
Practical,  the,  importance  of,  85, 

158. 
Province  of,  n,  12. 
Practical  callings,  37. 
Programme,  the,  45,  46,  52,  53, 

S4,  92. 
Progress,  of  country  school,  134, 

206,  207. 
Educational,  143,  200,  209. 
Promotion,  84,  154,  155. 
Pronunciation,  165,  166. 
Prospects,  197. 
Prosperity,  5,  9,  13,  25,  37. 
Provincialism,  144. 
Public  sentiment,  118. 
Punishment,  69. 
Pupils,  the,  7,  8,  9,  n,  14,  15,  32, 

62,  63,  64. 
Knowing  names  of,  77. 
Seating,  30,  31. 

Reading,  29,  163. 

Recess,  gi,  69. 

Recitation,  the,  45,  92,  93,  97. 

Form  of,  95. 

Periods  of,  92. 

Plan  of,  98. 

Programme  of,  53. 

Value  of,  93. 
Records,  27. 


INDEX 


217 


Recreation,    19,    no,    in,    na, 

121,  122,  123.  124, 
Reproof,  69. 
Respect,  66. 
Revenue,  136. 
Reviewing,  28,  81,  83,  84. 
Rhetoric,  168. 
Roman  education,  160. 
Rules,  62. 

Salary,  18,  100,  102,  142,  173, 

207. 
Sanitation,  36,  41. 
Scholar,  the,  119. 
Scholarship,  67,  130,  174,  195. 
School,  the,  loi,  125,  126,  128. 

Function  of,  102. 

Opening  of,  72. 

Order  in,  74,  75. 

Organization  of,  27. 
School  board,  the,  5,  6,  8,  27,  40, 

102,  151. 
School  day,  length  of,  51,  52. 
School  directors,  5. 
School  districts,  103. 

Officers  of,  146,  147. 
School  government,  62. 

Factors  in,  66. 
School-grounds,  33. 
School-house,  the,  33,  34,  35,  36. 
School  management,  aims  of,  55. 

Characteristics  of,  58,  59. 
School-room,  74. 

Floor  plan  of,  77. 
School  work,  value  of,  158. 
Schools,  demonstration,  133,  137, 

179,  184. 
Science,  36. 
Science  club,  41. 
Self-control,  66,  74. 
Self-reliance,  21. 
Sewing,  37,  164. 
Shop,  the,  36. 


Signals,  72. 

Singing  clubs,  the,  42.  - 

Skill,  59,  182,  183,  191,  192. 

Social  centre,  the,  121. 

Social  life,  4,  35,  loi,  105,  122. 

Social  side,  the,  24.  ^ 

Social  uplift,  103.     ' 

Spelling,  79,  80,  163. 

Spontaneity,  96. 

Standardization,   136,    152,   153, 

154,  156,  157,  199. 
State,  the,  province  of  in  educa- 
tion, 135,  136,  202,  203. 
State  aid,  127,  128,  129,  130,  202, 

203. 
State  institute,  130. 
Stimulation,  32. 
Studies,  21,  79,  80,  82. 

Programme  of,  162. 
Study,  51,  81,  86,  89. 

Course  of,  12,  28,  37,  138,  159. 

Programme  of,  54. 

Values  of,  91. 
Subsidy,  State,  128,  129, 137,  180, 

202. 
Success,  23,  24,  63,  64,  81,  137, 

143,  188,  193,  194,  195. 
Supervision,   73,    n4,   134,   137, 
143,  180,  200,  20g. 

Ends  of,  n7,  n8. 

Organization  of,  II5. 

Unit  of,  lis,  148. 
Suspension,  69. 
Sympathy,  85,  86. 
System,  73,  78,  79. 

Tactics,  55,  71,  72,  74,  75. 

Talent,  variability  of,  190. 

Taxation,  128. 

Taxing  unit,  the,  147,  148. 

Teacher,  the,  8,  9,  23,  24,  25,  27, 
28,29,31,32,36,55,56,57, 
58,59,61,62,63,64,65,66, 


218 


INDEX 


67,  68,  71,  72,  74,  75,  76,  77, 
78,  79,  81,  84,  86,  87,  88,  90, 
94,  95,  96,  97,  100,  loi,  102, 
107,  116,  117,  124,  125,  130. 
Incompetency  of,  69. 
Inefficiency  of,  68. 
Influence  of,  104,  105,  106. 
Licensing  of,  131. 
Manner  of,  57. 
Training  of,  131,  175,  176,  177, 

178,  179,  180. 
Special,  131,  185. 
Spirit  of,  57,  66. 
Teacher  supply,  173. 
Teachers'  institute,  180. 
Teachers'  reading  circle,  180. 
Teaching,  economy  in,  94,  95. 
Text-books,  87, 88, 89, 90, 91, 157. 
Town,  life  in,  141,  142. 
Township  unit,  149. 
Traditions,  96,  156. 
Training,  of  teacher,   131,    175, 
176,  177,  178,  179,  180. 
Social,  19. 
Vocational,  16. 


Transportation,  progress  in,  134, 

ISO. 
Tutoring,  93. 


Useful,  the,  85. 


Vigilance,  necessity  for,  64. 
Vocational     notions,     182,    183, 
184. 


Weeds,  study  of,  186. 
Women  teachers,  1 16,  117. 
Women's  club,  42.     »-^^ 
Work,  II,  121,  188. 

Oral,  80,  82,  98. 

Quality  of,  173. 

Written,  98. 


Young  people,   108,   109,  no, 
III,  112,  208. 
Rights  of,  20,31,  63,69. 


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